Justice Department Disrupts Hamas Fundraising Schemes with Cryptocurrency Seizures

The US Justice Department has disrupted an ongoing Hamas fundraising scheme by seizing over $560,000 in cryptocurrency donations and shutting down its online infrastructure. The seizures targeted the Al Qassam Brigades' main website, alQassam.ps, as well as several cryptocurrency addresses controlled by the terrorist organization.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg stated that these actions 'deprive Hamas of resources it relies on to recruit and radicalize individuals online and finance barbaric attacks.' The FBI's Counterterrorism Division, Cyber Division, and New York Field Office are working together with the Albuquerque Field Office to investigate the case.

The seizures were part of a larger effort to disrupt Hamas's ability to raise funds for terrorist operations. According to Assistant Director Brett Leatherman of the FBI's Cyber Division, the organization 'relied on cryptocurrency and online platforms to solicit funds from donors around the world and move that money outside the formal financial system.'

US Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro emphasized that 'Hamas's networks are not secure, their crypto is vulnerable, and we will not stop until their ability to wage war is defeated.' The investigation has also revealed thousands of individuals who contacted Hamas online in an effort to donate or attempt to donate using cryptocurrency.