Gaza Genocide · updated 1h ago · 3 min read
U.S. Sanctions Hamas Finance Network In France, Targeting Three Individuals And Two Charities
US sanctions targeted three individuals and two France-based charities tied to Hamas funding network. Network reportedly raised over $2 million for Hamas through charities and other means.
Whether the alleged Hamas financier is in US custody or at large.
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People Daily
“Al-Zaq at centre Treasury identified al-Zaq as a central figure in the alleged financing network.”Read the original ↗
One outlet stresses custody status, another focuses on role, changing perceived immediacy.
Sanctions target France network
The United States imposed sanctions on Friday on three individuals and two charitable organizations based in France, alleging they were part of a network that raised more than two million dollars for the Palestinian Islamist movement Hamas.
The U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement that "these designations reveal an advanced, years-long funding structure that moved more than two million dollars to Hamas through deceptive charitable fronts and cryptocurrency channels".
The sanctioned list included سليم عبد الله سليم الزق, described as a member of Hamas who oversees the financial network and works with the movement's media office, and it also included فوزي بريكة and آمال وليد, linked to two France-based charitable associations 'أسوسياسيون بركة' and 'أونسمبل سي مييو'.
The Treasury Department stated that فوزي بريكة and آمال وليد "operate from France, where they run two charitable institutions alleged to be dedicated to fundraising for humanitarian purposes to assist civilians in Gaza".
The Treasury Department added that the network "raised more than two million dollars between 2020 and 2026, of which 1.5 million dollars were raised after Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023".
Arrests in France, DOJ action
The U.S. Department of Justice announced on Friday the detention in France of Oualid, 39, and Barika, 35, and it said a third person, Nordine Barika, was also detained by French authorities in this case.
France 24 reported that the operation was carried out by agents of the French Directorate General for Internal Security, and it said the press release did not specify the date of the arrest or any possible subsequent judicial actions.
The U.S. Treasury Department said Barika and Oualid "operate from France, where they run supposed charitable organizations that, on the surface, raise money for humanitarian purposes to help Gaza civilians," and it linked the alleged fundraising to Hamas through the sanctioned Saleem Abdallah Saleem al-Zaq.
JNS.org said the U.S. Department of Justice unsealed indictments against Omar Adhami and Abdel Adhami, and it also announced indictments against Saleem Alzaq, described as at the "center" of the network, and Raed Yusuf of Florida.
JNS.org quoted John Eisenberg, assistant U.S. attorney general for national security, saying 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".
Gaza war backdrop and stakes
The sanctions were issued against a backdrop of an Israeli war on Gaza that Al-Jazeera Net said ensued after Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, turning vast areas of the Palestinian enclave into rubble.
Al-Jazeera Net said the war resulted in the death of more than 70,000 people, according to official figures considered credible by the United Nations, and it added that more than 1,400 people have been killed by Israeli fire in Gaza since the ceasefire was announced in October of last year, according to the Health Ministry in the territory.
People Daily said the U.S. PTreasury Department accused the network of helping channel more than Ksh259 million ($2 million) to Hamas through purported charities and cryptocurrency, and it said the network collected more than Ksh259 million between 2020 and 2026, including about Ksh194.5 million ($1.5 million) after the October 7, 2023 attack.
People Daily quoted Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent saying, "Terrorist organizations like Hamas rely on sophisticated financial facilitators and fraudulent schemes designed to exploit the public to sustain their operations," and it said Treasury would continue to identify, isolate, and impose consequences.P
People Daily also said the sanctions freeze any assets the designated individuals and entities may hold in the United States and require U.S. companies and citizens to break any financial relationship with them, at the risk of also being hit by sanctions.P