U.S., France Dismantle Hamas Terror-Finance Network That Raised Millions Through Alleged Sham Charities

by Emmitt Barry, Worthy News Washington D.C. Bureau Chief

(Worthy News) – U.S. and French authorities have dismantled an international financing network accused of raising millions of dollars for Hamas while presenting fundraising campaigns to donors as humanitarian assistance for Palestinians in Gaza, according to the Justice Department and Treasury Department.

The coordinated operation resulted in arrests in both the United States and France, while U.S. authorities announced new terrorism-related charges and sanctions targeting individuals and organizations allegedly involved in moving money to Hamas.

The Justice Department said Friday that Saleem Alzaq, a Gaza resident described by prosecutors as being at the center of the network, was charged along with several alleged associates. Omar Adhami and Abdel Adhami of Louisiana and Raed Yousef of Florida were arrested in the United States.

Meanwhile, France’s General Directorate for Internal Security arrested three alleged associates of Alzaq — Faouzi Barika, Amel Oualid and Nordine Barika — as part of the coordinated investigation.

“Money is the lifeblood of terrorist organizations, and the arrests announced today disrupted a global financing network that was supplying Hamas with the funds needed to continue its campaign of destroying innocent lives,” Assistant Attorney General for National Security John Eisenberg said.

Humanitarian Appeals Allegedly Concealed Hamas Fundraising

According to federal prosecutors, Alzaq has operated an international fundraising network since at least January 2020, soliciting donations through social media campaigns ostensibly intended to provide humanitarian assistance to people in Gaza.

Prosecutors allege that the money was instead funneled to Hamas, which the United States has designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization.

JNS reported that the network raised approximately $1.75 million, including roughly $626,000 from donors in the United States. The Treasury Department, using a broader accounting of the financing architecture, said the network moved more than $2 million to Hamas, including about $1.5 million collected after the Hamas-led Oct. 7, 2023 attack on Israel.

Treasury officials said the operation relied on “deceptive charitable fronts and cryptocurrency channels” to move money while attempting to evade detection.

Alzaq is identified by Treasury as a battalion deputy in Hamas’s Al-Qassam Brigades who oversees a financial network using money-service businesses and cryptocurrency wallets to transfer funds to the terrorist organization. He also allegedly served as a photographer in Hamas’s media operation and had access to senior Hamas officials.

American Donors Charged

Federal authorities say the alleged network reached directly into the United States.

Abdel Adhami, 35, of Covington, Louisiana, allegedly contributed approximately $94,000, while his brother Omar Adhami, 33, allegedly contributed approximately $11,000. Prosecutors accuse the brothers of attempting to conceal the payments through wire transfers and intermediaries.

Yousef, a resident of Lutz, Florida, allegedly provided nearly $50,000 to the network.

The Justice Department emphasized that the allegations remain accusations and that the defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in court.

Alzaq remains at large.

French Charities Sanctioned

Treasury also sanctioned Barika and Oualid along with two France-based organizations — Association Baraka and Ensemble C Mieux — which U.S. authorities allege operated as charitable fronts for Hamas fundraising.

According to Treasury, the organizations presented themselves as humanitarian operations helping civilians in Gaza while sending funds to Alzaq, who allegedly transferred the money to Hamas.

“Terrorist organizations like Hamas rely on sophisticated financial facilitators and fraudulent schemes designed to exploit the public to sustain their operations,” Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said.

The Treasury action freezes property and financial interests under U.S. jurisdiction belonging to the sanctioned parties and generally prohibits Americans from conducting transactions with them.

Attorney General Todd Blanche said the coordinated crackdown demonstrates that U.S. authorities intend to pursue not only terrorist operatives but also the financial infrastructure that sustains them.

“Anyone who finances or assists terrorist organizations responsible for the deaths of American citizens should expect to be prosecuted by the Department of Justice,” Blanche said.

FBI Director Kash Patel said investigators followed the flow of money across international borders, including cryptocurrency transactions allegedly intended to conceal the network’s activities.

The operation highlights a continuing challenge for Western counterterrorism agencies: distinguishing legitimate humanitarian fundraising for civilians in conflict zones from financial networks that authorities say exploit charitable appeals to secretly finance terrorist organizations.