On October 2, 2026, the U.S. Treasury Department announced sanctions against three people and two France-based organizations it alleges were part of a Hamas fundraising network. Treasury says two of the individuals sent hundreds of thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency to a Gaza-based Hamas operative. That is distinct from the more than $2 million Treasury says the network collected overall; the department did not say that all of the money was crypto.
Who Treasury designated, and what it alleges
The Treasury Department said the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) designated Saleem Abdallah Saleem al-Zaq, Faouzi Barika and Amel Oualid, along with the France-based organizations Association Baraka and Ensemble C Mieux. OFAC listed the three people and two organizations on the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List) under Executive Order 13224, as amended.
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Treasury describes al-Zaq as a Gaza-based deputy in Hamas’s military wing. It alleges he oversaw a financing network using money-services businesses and cryptocurrency wallets, and that Barika and Oualid operated from France in partnership with him. Treasury says Association Baraka was jointly established by Barika and al-Zaq, and Ensemble C Mieux was established by Oualid.
What the money figures do—and do not—show
Treasury says the three individuals collected more than $2 million for Hamas between 2020 and 2026, including $1.5 million collected after October 7, 2023. Separately, it says Barika and Oualid sent hundreds of thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency to al-Zaq. These are Treasury’s attributed figures and descriptions, not independently verified transaction totals.
The distinction matters: the release does not say the full fundraising total was transferred in cryptocurrency. Nor does it publish wallet addresses, transaction hashes or a wallet-by-wallet account that would let readers assess the alleged transfers from the underlying records. Treasury characterized the action as targeting a financing network that used deceptive charitable fronts and cryptocurrency channels.
OFAC sanctions and DOJ criminal cases are different actions
| Action | What it means in this case | What it does not establish |
|---|---|---|
| OFAC designation | On October 2, 2026, OFAC added three people and two organizations to the SDN List under Executive Order 13224, as amended. | It is an administrative sanctions action, not a criminal conviction. |
| DOJ indictment and related cases | DOJ announced an unsealed indictment charging al-Zaq and described connected U.S. cases and arrests. It said French authorities arrested Barika, Oualid and Nordine Barika. | An indictment is an allegation, not a finding of guilt; an arrest is not a conviction. |
DOJ also announced arrests in connected U.S. cases of Omar Adhami, Abdel Adhami and Raed Yousef. Its October 2 release says the allegations involved fundraising from U.S.-based donors. DOJ cautions that defendants are presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in court. The sanctions announcement and the criminal proceedings therefore have separate legal meanings and must not be treated as interchangeable.
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What the sanctions mean for money and digital assets
Under Treasury’s explanation, property and interests in property belonging to designated or otherwise blocked persons must be blocked when they are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons. The property must be reported to OFAC. An entity owned 50 percent or more, directly or indirectly and in aggregate, by one or more blocked persons is itself treated as blocked under OFAC’s 50 Percent Rule.
U.S. persons, and transactions within or transiting the United States, are generally barred from dealings involving blocked persons unless an OFAC license authorizes the transaction or an exemption applies. Treasury warns that violations can carry civil or criminal penalties and that certain foreign financial institutions may face secondary-sanctions exposure.
OFAC says the same sanctions obligations apply whether a transaction uses digital currency or fiat currency. That does not mean every public-blockchain transaction is automatically frozen worldwide. The restrictions turn on factors such as U.S. jurisdiction, whether property is blocked, ownership under the 50 Percent Rule, and any applicable license or exemption. OFAC advises businesses handling digital currency to use tailored, risk-based compliance programs, including sanctions-list screening.
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