A bipartisan group of lawmakers is urging the Biden administration to swiftly crack down on the use of cryptocurrencies by Hamas and its affiliates following the Palestinian terrorist group's deadly attack in Israel earlier this month.
In a letter sent on Tuesday to the US Treasury Department and the White House led by Senators Elizabeth Warren, Roger Marshall and Representative Sean Casten, 105 lawmakers expressed “grave concern” that Hamas and an affiliated group called Palestinian Islamic Jihad were using digital assets to fund their operations and evade US sanctions.
“Congress and this administration must take strong action to thoroughly address crypto illicit finance risks before it can be used to finance another tragedy,” the letter said.
Israeli police said in an Oct. 10 statement that it had frozen several crypto accounts that were used to solicit donations for Hamas. Reuters reported in May that Israel had seized around 190 crypto accounts at crypto exchange Binance since 2021, including dozens it said were owned by Palestinian firms connected to Hamas.
Binance said the exchange had been "working closely with international counter-terrorism authorities" on the seizures.
From its inception, the cryptocurrency community touted digital assets as vehicles for anonymous transactions, and a slew of federal enforcement actions for fraud, money laundering and unregistered coin offerings has put the industry in the spotlight.
Hamas uses a global financing network to funnel support from charities and friendly nations, including by using cryptocurrencies, Reuters reported on Monday.
Israeli authorities have seized “tens of millions of dollars” in crypto from Hamas-linked addresses in recent years, according to blockchain researchers TRM Labs.
The lawmakers requested that the Biden administration provide estimates on the value of crypto assets that remain in Hamas-controlled wallets, how much of Hamas' operations are funded through crypto, and any information it has on the actors facilitating the sending of crypto to and from Hamas and other terrorist groups.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
Featured Video Of The Day
Jai Jawan: John Abraham's Real-Life Experience In Infantry Combat Vehicle: "Seems Indestructible"
Ceasefire Must Involve "Complete" Israeli Withdrawal From Gaza: Hamas Gaza Ceasefire Talks Underway In Qatar As Deaths Top 40,000 Over 40,000 Killed In Gaza Amid Raging War, Says Hamas Health Ministry Mamata Banerjee's Sunday Ultimatum To CBI For Death Penalty In Rape-Murder Who Is Jasveen Sangha, "Ketamine Queen" Charged With Matthew Perry's Death "Don't Expect Anything From Me": Kolkata Hospital's New Principal Loses Cool PM Shri Schools Are Inspiring Rural Children: Dharmendra Pradhan Will Messages From Budget Session Of Parliament Find Reflection In Subsequent Sessions? Mpox Outbreak Could Soon Turn Into The Next Global Pandemic. Know More Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.