Israel’s Minister of Finance has ordered the seizure of over $800,000 in cryptocurrency suspected of being used to finance Hamas.
Hamas has a complex network of money exchanges that enables the importation of products and monies to finance its military activities.
Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military branch, gave instructional films on how to anonymously give cryptocurrency intended for use in violent acts.
The Trust Project is a global partnership of news organisations dedicated to developing transparency standards. Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman wasted no time confiscating over $800,000 in cryptocurrency alleged to have been delivered to Hamas to fuel its armed operations.
Hamas’ foothold is eroding as Israeli Defense Minister Benny Gantz gives another blow to the organization’s attempts to sidestep established finance routes. The Minister has ordered the seizure of more than $800,000 in cryptocurrency suspected of being used to finance Hamas. This payment is suspected to have reached Hamas through a Gaza-based bitcoin exchange. This exchange is known to yearly transmit huge money to Hamas, which Israel has designated as a terrorist group.
Hamas has a complex network of money exchanges that enables the importation of products and monies to finance its military activities. The financing network was discovered by the Israeli Defense Forces intelligence, the Defense Ministry’s National Headquarters on Terrorist Economic Counter-Terrorism, the Israel Police’s Lahav 443 Major Crimes Unit’s cybercrime section, and the State Attorney’s Office’s Cyber Unit.
Recently, the Defense Minister allowed the confiscation of crypto wallets belonging to the aforementioned Gazan family, which was using bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies to generate donations for Hamas online. Israeli police have been monitoring this conversation for many years.
Israel’s Defense Forces murdered Hamed Ahmed Khudari in Gaza in 2019, after he utilised digital currencies to send Iranian funds to Hamas and support terrorism. The monies were utilised to construct missiles for use against Israel. Following this assassination, activity on the exchange surged, eliciting suspicion and prompting more inquiry.
The US Justice Department revealed in early 2020 the dismantling of terrorist finance networks organised by Hamas’ military arm, al-Qaeda, and the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant, or ISIS. Al-Qassam Brigades, Hamas’ military branch, gave instructional films on how to anonymously give cryptocurrency intended for use in violent acts. Multiple federal agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), were able to monitor and confiscate any cryptocurrency accounts used to transmit money to al-Qassam Brigades, as well as perform searches of US persons suspected of donating.
Al-Qaeda had a bitcoin money-laundering network that solicited contributions using Telegram groups and other social media platforms. At the time, this was the biggest seizure of cryptocurrency used in terrorism by US authorities. Over 300 bitcoin accounts were confiscated, along with millions of dollars.
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