Gazan sham charities’ crowdfunding funneled cash to alleged terrorists, US probes show

US federal investigators are probing three cases linking Gaza crowdfunding campaigns to alleged terrorism financing. One probe targets Mahmoud Amin Ya’qub al-Muhtadi, accused of leading a terrorist squad into Israel on October 7, 2023, before moving to the US. A GoFundMe campaign by his wife, Nieama al-Ghazzawi, raised over $13,000 from 401 donors. Other cases involve an anti-Zionist activist and a California man charged with using sham charities for Hamas.

US federal investigators are examining three cases that link Gaza crowdfunding campaigns to alleged terrorism financing, highlighting the intersection of terror financing, social media, and cryptocurrency. The first probe targets Mahmoud Amin Ya’qub al-Muhtadi, who allegedly led a terrorist squad into Israel during the October 7, 2023, Hamas onslaught before moving to the US. In January 2024, his wife, Nieama al-Ghazzawi, created a GoFundMe campaign asking for donations to reunite her family. The campaign raised over $13,000 from 401 donors. Al-Ghazzawi posted an update in March 2024 saying her husband had left Gaza, around the time prosecutors said al-Muhtadi had left. The second case involves a New York-based anti-Zionist activist charged with sending funds to Palestinian Islamic Jihad. The third centers on a California man charged with using sham charities to fundraise for Hamas. The FBI warned in November 2023 that criminals were soliciting donations during the Israel-Hamas conflict. Experts note crowdfunding platforms are less regulated than financial institutions, making them vulnerable to abuse.