Today, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) is sanctioning five individuals and five sham charities located abroad that are prominent financial supporters of Hamas’s Military Wing and its terrorist activities. The individuals and entities sanctioned today are responsible for funding Hamas’s Military Wing under the pretense of conducting humanitarian work, both internationally and in Gaza. Treasury is also targeting a separate fraudulent charity linked to the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP).
As outlined in Treasury’s 2024 National Terrorist Financing Risk Assessment, terrorist financing risks still exist primarily in the context of sham charities abroad. This includes terrorist networks that establish seemingly legitimate charitable non-profit organizations (NPOs) under the guise of providing humanitarian assistance but instead are primarily utilized for funneling money to terrorist organizations.
“Today’s action underscores the importance of safeguarding the charitable sector from abuse by terrorists like Hamas and the PFLP, who continue to leverage sham charities as fronts for funding their terrorist and military operations,” said Deputy Secretary Michael Faulkender. “Treasury will continue to use all available tools to prevent Hamas, the PFLP, and other terrorist actors from exploiting the humanitarian situation in Gaza to fund their violent activities at the expense of their own people.”
Today’s action, which is being taken pursuant to the counterterrorism authority in Executive Order (E.O.) 13224, as amended, highlights the abuse of the nonprofit sector by terrorist financiers to illicitly generate, store, and move funds. The PFLP was designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and a Specially Designated Global Terrorist by the U.S. Department of State in October 1997 and October 2001, respectively.
The United States continues to closely coordinate with its partners in targeting Hamas, including a joint designation with Australia and the United Kingdom on January 22, 2024 that targeted Hamas financial facilitators, as well as three actions with the United Kingdom on March 27, 2024, December 13, 2023, and November 14, 2023 targeting Hamas leaders and financiers.
TERRORISTS’ EXPLOITATION OF THE NPO SECTOR
Hamas and the PFLP have long abused the trust of the international community and public support for legitimate humanitarian causes to fund their terrorist activities and bring violence to the Israeli and Palestinian people. As Hamas continues to hold hostages, including two American citizens, following the October 7, 2023 attack, Treasury remains committed to exposing terrorists and terrorist organizations that seek to abuse the NPO sector to raise funds under the façade of humanitarian support.
This helps reduce the overall terrorist financing risk of the NPO sector by publicly identifying financing networks in support of terrorist organizations and activities. For more information about how Hamas finances its terrorist activities, see the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network’s Alert to Financial Institutions to Counter Financing to Hamas and its Terrorist Activities.
HAMAS AND PFLP FUNDRAISING SCHEMES
Hamas and the PFLP have a long history of abusing the NPO and charitable sectors. Some of these NPOs and charities are entirely co-opted and run by these designated terrorists, with their links to Hamas and the PFLP intentionally obscured in order to evade sanctions. This allows Hamas and the PFLP to exploit the sympathy and generosity of the international public at the expense of the Palestinian people.
The Gaza-based charity Al Weam Charitable Society (Al Weam) is clandestinely controlled by Hamas and fully integrated into Hamas’s military wing. This secrecy has allowed Al Weam to raise funds and implement projects by international donors, many of whom are unwittingof the organization’s ties to Hamas. Al Weam has also employed Hamas members throughout the organization, including its Chairman of the Board of Directors, Muhammad Sami Muhammad Abu Marei (Abu Marei), who is a Hamas military operative and facilitated fundraising on behalf of Hamas using Al Weam.
Filistin Vakfi is a Türkiye-based charity that campaigned and raised funds withhe clear intention of funding Hamas terrorist activities following the deadly October 7, 2023 attack. The President of Filistin Vakfi, Zeki Abdullah Ibrahim Ararawi (Ararawi), oversaw these fundraising campaigns that were in support of the Hamas military wing.
El Baraka Association for Charitable and Humanitarian Work (El Baraka), based in Algeria, diverted funds intended for humanitarian causes to fund Hamas. As President of El Baraka, Ahmed Brahimi (Brahimi) worked to ensure that funds raised by the charity, including some by unwitting donors who thought they were helping Palestinian civilians, were instead diverted to Hamas.
The Netherlands-based Israa Charitable Foundation Netherlands (Israa Foundation) is a member of U.S.-designated umbrella organization the Union of Good, which reports directly to the Hamas military wing and is composed of additional U.S.-designated organizations that generate revenue for Hamas under the guise of legitimate charitable work. Amin Ghazi Abu Rashed (Amin Ghazi), representative of the Israa Foundation, is a top Hamas operative in Europe responsible for raising millions of U.S. dollars in funds for Hamas by using sham charities as a cover. Israa Foundation representative and Hamas operative Israa Abou Rashed (Abou Rashed) led campaigns on behalf of the Israa Foundation to raise and divert funds to Hamas. Treasury designated the Union of Good, an organization created by Hamas leadership to transfer funds to the terrorist organization, on November 12, 2008.
Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association (Addameer), based in the West Bank, purports to represent the interests of Palestinian prisoners. However, like the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network (Samidoun) that OFAC designated on October 15, 2024 along with one of its leaders, Khaled Barakat (Barakat), Addameer has long supported and is affiliated with the PFLP. Additionally, in the spring of 2022, Barakat coordinated with the PFLP to send funds to Addameer and to arrange meetings between Addameer and Samidoun.
The Italy-based Associazione Benefica La Cupola d’Oro (La Cupola d’Oro), was established by U.S. sanctioned individual Mohammad Hannoun (Hannoun), who publicly promoted the charity and used it to continue evading sanctions and raising revenue for the Hamas military wing through donors, many of whom were unwitting of the links to Hamas. On October 7, 2024, Treasury designated Hannoun for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services in support of, Hamas. La Cupola d’Oro, like Charity Association of Solidarity with the Palestinian People, also designated by OFAC on October 7, 2024, is a sham charity established to support Hamas.
Al-Weam is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for being owned, controlled, or directed by, or for having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Hamas.
Abu Marei is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for owning or controlling, directly or indirectly, Al-Weam.
El Baraka, Brahimi, Israa Foundation, Amin Ghazi, Abou Rashed, and La Cupola d’Oro, are being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Hamas.
Ararawi is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for being owned, controlled, or directed by, or for having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Hamas.
Filistin Vakfi is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for being owned, controlled, or directed by, or for having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Ararawi.
Addameer Prisoner Support and Human Rights Association is being designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for being owned, controlled, or directed by, or for having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, the PFLP.
SANCTIONS IMPLICATIONS
As a result of today’s action, all property and interests in property of the designated or blocked persons described above that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. In addition, any entities that are owned, directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. Unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC, or exempt, OFAC’s regulations generally prohibit all transactions by U.S. persons or within (or transiting) the United States that involve any property or interests in property of blocked persons.
Violations of U.S. sanctions may result in the imposition of civil or criminal penalties on U.S. and foreign persons. OFAC may impose civil penalties for sanctions violations on a strict liability basis. OFAC’s Economic Sanctions Enforcement Guidelines provide more information regarding OFAC’s enforcement of U.S. economic sanctions. In addition, financial institutions and other persons may risk exposure to sanctions for engaging in certain transactions or activities involving designated or otherwise blocked persons. The prohibitions include the making of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services by, to, or for the benefit of any designated or blocked person, or the receipt of any contribution or provision of funds, goods, or services from any such person.
Furthermore, engaging in certain transactions involving the persons designated today may risk the imposition of secondary sanctions on participating foreign financial institutions. OFAC can prohibit or impose strict conditions on opening or maintaining, in the United States, a correspondent account or a payable-through account of a foreign financial institution that knowingly conducts or facilitates any significant transaction on behalf of a person who is designated pursuant to the relevant authority.
The power and integrity of OFAC sanctions derive not only from OFAC’s ability to designate and add persons to the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List), but also from its willingness to remove persons from the SDN List consistent with the law. The ultimate goal of sanctions is not to punish, but to bring about a positive change in behavior. For information concerning the process for seeking removal from an OFAC list, including the SDN List, or to submit a request, please refer to OFAC’s guidance on Filing a Petition for Removal from an OFAC List.
Click here for more information on the persons designated today.
