In the wake of the recent Hamas-led surprise attack on Israel, US lawmakers are calling for immediate action to prevent terrorist groups from exploiting cryptocurrencies for fundraising. A bipartisan group of 105 congressmen, spearheaded by Senators Elizabeth Warren and Roger Marshall, along with Representative Sean Casten, penned a letter on October 17, urging President Joe Biden to take decisive measures to address the risks associated with illicit finance in the crypto sphere.
The letter, directed to the US Treasury Department and the National Security Council, seeks clarity on the administration’s strategies to counter the use of cryptocurrencies by Hamas and other militant organizations in the financing of terrorism. In recent months leading up to the Hamas attack on Israel, the letter contends that both Hamas and the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ) amassed millions of dollars in cryptocurrency, using it to evade US sanctions
The Israel Police's Cyber Unit, in collaboration with the Ministry of Defense, the Israel Security Agency, and other national intelligence agencies, has successfully frozen cryptocurrency accounts used by Hamas for fundraising their activities pic.twitter.com/PrUV4ybrxZ
— Israel Police (@israelpolice) October 10, 2023
The lawmakers revealed that these groups raised more than $130 million in cryptocurrency between August 2021 and June of the current year. Notably, PIJ contributed over $12 million to Hezbollah during this period.
Additionally, the legislators have called upon the Biden administration to provide an estimate of the cryptocurrency still held in Hamas-controlled wallets, the percentage of cryptocurrency financing Hamas’ activities, and any available data on individuals facilitating cryptocurrency transfers to and from Hamas and other militant organizations.
A bipartisan group of #US #lawmakers is urging the #Biden administration to swiftly crack down on the use of #cryptocurrencies by #Hamas and its affiliates following its deadly attack in #Israel.
In a letter sent on Tuesday to the U.S. #Treasury Department and the #WhiteHouse… pic.twitter.com/2fq9voRVAy
— MIDEAST TODAY (@MideastToday) October 18, 2023
The letter underscores the urgency of addressing the growing use of cryptocurrency by terrorist organizations and the associated national security threats. Israeli Defense Minister Yoav Gallant emphasized the difficulty of curbing such illicit fundraising as terrorists and hackers increasingly turn to digital assets. Israel had taken control of approximately 190 cryptocurrency accounts on Binance, including those linked to Hamas-affiliated Palestinian businesses, earlier this year, as reported by Reuters.
In a previous communication, Senator Warren had labeled Binance and its US division as a “hotbed” of illegal activity, accusing them of financing over $10 billion in payments to criminals and sanctions evaders.
