The United States announced new sanctions Friday aimed at disrupting Hamas’ financial network, including a deputy battalion commander in the terrorist organization’s military wing, two France-based fundraisers and two entities, the Treasury Department said.
“These designations expose a sophisticated, multi-year financing architecture that moved more than $2 million to Hamas through deceptive charitable fronts and cryptocurrency channels, demonstrating the organization’s persistent ability to adapt its fundraising mechanisms to evade detection," Treasury said in a statement quoted by Reuters.
The sanctioned Hamas operative, Saleem Abdallah Saleem al-Zaq, serves as a battalion deputy in the group’s military wing in Gaza.
According to Treasury, he oversees a financial network that has relied on money services businesses and cryptocurrency wallets to move substantial sums to Hamas’ Al-Qassam Brigades.
The latest measures follow US sanctions announced in July against three individuals and three organizations accused of supporting Hamas.
In November 2024, Washington also sanctioned six Hamas leaders over their role in facilitating the transfer of weapons and cash to the terrorist organization in Gaza.
At the time, the State Department stressed that “there is no distinction between Hamas’ so-called military wing and its political leadership. We will continue to use the tools at our disposal to target those who perpetuate Hamas’s destabilizing activities."
(Arutz Sheva-Israel National News' North American desk is keeping you updated until the start of Simchat Torah and Shmini Atzeret in New York. The time posted automatically on all Israel National News articles, however, is Israeli time.)