Three pro-Palestine terrorist groups — including Hamas, the organization behind the surprise attacks that killed more than 250 Israelis on Saturday — have been funding their operations with tens of millions of dollars raised through cryptocurrency. NY Post Business reporter Shannon Thaler shares this story.
Between August 2021 and June 2023, Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jahid (PIJ), and its Lebanese ally, Hezbollah, have collectively received over $134 million in crypto, according to Israeli government seizure orders and blockchain analytics reports reviewed by The Wall Street Journal.
Hamas received some $41 million in digital currency over the nearly two-year period, The Journal reported. PIJ — whose militants from the Gaza Strip joined Hamas in storming Israel over the weekend — has received crypto funds to the tune of $93 million between August 2021 and this June, according to the outlet.
Crypto funds were seized from crypto exchange Binance in June reportedly belonging to Hezbollah, a longtime foe of Israel based in Lebanon, though it’s unclear how much digital currency the group had.
A Binance spokesperson told The Journal that the Singapore-based company “has been working in real-time, around the clock, to support ongoing efforts” to keep terrorist groups from having access to crypto.
It wasn’t immediately clear whether the funding was used to finance Hamas’ recent airstrikes and raids that have obliterated Israeli cities and left residents defenseless.
Read more at https://nypost.com/2023/10/11/hamas-palestinian-terrorists-raised-nearly-100m-in-crypto/
#hamas #crypto #israel
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