US seizes $2 million in cryptocurrencies intended to fund Hamas
The move follows years of investigations into remittance company BuyCash and its suspected involvement in terrorist financing networks.
Hamas terrorists in Gaza.
The Department of Justice and the Office of the Attorney General for the District of Columbia have initiated a civil forfeiture against approximately $2 million in cryptocurrencies tied to a terrorist financing network in Gaza.
The funds, held in accounts at financial firms Tether Limited and Binance Holdings Ltd., were linked to the remittance company Buy Cash Money and Money Transfer Company (BuyCash), which is accused of transferring funds to Hamas and other terrorist organizations.
According to federal authorities, BuyCash served as a financial conduit for Hamas and its armed wing, the Izz al-Din al-Qassam Brigades, as well as for groups affiliated with ISIS and Al-Qaeda.
The move follows years of investigations into BuyCash’s operations and its involvement in terrorist financing networks.
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Attorney General Pam Bondi stated that organizations like Hamas rely on hidden financial networks to operate, and that seizing these cryptocurrencies aims to disrupt the financial infrastructure of terrorism by preventing digital currency platforms from serving as havens for such funds.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro of the District of Columbia emphasized that collaborating with other agencies enhances the protection of U.S. citizens against threats posed by terrorist organizations.
The complaint states that BuyCash users utilized accounts on Tether and Binance to conceal transactions intended to support terrorist groups. One such account received over $4 million before and after the October 7, 2023, massacre carried out by Hamas in Israel.
A company that has been in the crosshairs for years
BuyCash and its owner, Gaza-based Ahmed M. M. Alaqad, have been under investigation for years. Alaqad registered the BuyCash domain in 2015, and in June 2021, Israel seized cryptocurrency wallets linked to a Hamas fundraising campaign, including one operated by the company, which provided cryptocurrency exchange services.
The investigation was led by the FBI’s Washington Field Office. Deputy Director Steven J. Jensen affirmed that the agency remains committed to disrupting the flow of illicit funds to organizations such as Hamas.
Israeli security forces foil attempt on Netanyahu’s life
The suspect, identified only as a woman in her 70s due to a court-ordered gag, was detained by Israel Security Agency (Shin Bet) officers and questioned by the Lahav 433 National Unit for International Crimes.
Police revealed that the woman contacted other protest activists to obtain weapons and sought information about the prime minister’s security arrangements to carry out the attack.
According to Israel’s Kan News, she planned to use an explosive device in the assassination attempt.
The woman was reportedly released under conditions barring her from approaching Netanyahu or government buildings but is expected to face charges of conspiracy to commit a crime and an act of terror.
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