Biden administration sanctions 10 Hamas members, financial network in response to terror attack

The Biden administration on Wednesday sanctioned 10 Hamas members and the militant terrorist organization’s financial network in response to the surprise attack on Israel that left roughly 1,400 people dead and hundreds more kidnapped. The sanctions were imposed by the U.S. Treasury Department against the Hamas members who manage its investment portfolio, a Qatar-based financial company with close ties to Iran, a Hamas commander and a Gaza-based virtual currency exchange. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said the U.S. is taking “swift and decisive action to target Hamas’s financiers and facilitators.” “We will continue to take all steps necessary to deny Hamas terrorists the ability to raise and use funds to carry out atrocities and terrorize the people of Israel,” she said. The sanctions will block the Hamas terrorists and the financial network from accessing funds in the U.S. and preventing them from doing business with American people and companies. It is unclear how much, if any, assets the group has in the U.S. In its statement, the Treasury Department said Hamas is funded through small-dollar donations, including through cryptocurrency.