The Treasury Department on Wednesday announced new sanctions against a group of 10 members of Hamas, as well as the terrorist organization’s financial network across Gaza, Sudan, Turkey, Algeria and Qatar.
“This action targets members managing assets in a secret Hamas investment portfolio, a Qatar-based financial facilitator with close ties to the Iranian regime, a key Hamas commander, and a Gaza-based virtual currency exchange and its operator,” the Treasury Department stated in a news release.
Treasury added, “Today’s designations are part of a continuous effort by the United States to root out Hamas’s sources of revenue in the West Bank and Gaza and across the region and is taken in close coordination with regional partners and allies.”
To date, the Treasury Department has targeted nearly 1,000 people and entities connected to terrorism and terrorist financing by Iran and its proxies, the statement went on. Among the Iran-aligned terrorist groups it listed were Hamas and Hezbolllah.
The announcement of the new sanctions came as President Biden was in Israel amid that country’s war with Hamas following a massive, surprise attack on Israelis on October 7.
However, Biden was compelled to cancel a trip to Jordan, where he’d planned to meet with the leaders of Jordan, Egypt and the Palestinian Authority, amid questions surrounding an explosion at a hospital in Gaza City that killed hundreds of civilians. Hamas blamed Israel for the attack while Israel blamed a misfired rocket by the Palestinian-based terrorist organization, Islamic Jihad.
U.S. and British intelligence organizations were gathering independent evidence to try to conclude the source of the blast.
During an anti-money laundering conference Tuesday Brian Nelson, Treasury Department’s under secretary for terrorism and illicit finance, said, “We want to partner with all willing countries and financial entities to stop Hamas financing, but to the extent that any institution or jurisdiction fails to take appropriate action, they should then be prepared to suffer the consequences.”
He added, “We cannot, and we will not, tolerate money flowing through the international system for Hamas’ terrorist activity.”
PHOTO: Rocket being fired at Israeli-occupied territory Oct 8
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