JUSTICE DEPARTMENT SEIZES MORE THAN $560,000 IN CRYPTOCURRENCY AND DISRUPTS HAMAS ONLINE FUNDRAISING INFRASTRUCTURE

WASHINGTON — The Justice Department has announced a coordinated disruption of an online fundraising and recruitment operation it says was controlled by Hamas, resulting in the seizure of more than $560,000 in cryptocurrency and the court-authorized takeover of internet domains and servers used to solicit financial support.

The operation targeted cryptocurrency wallets, virtual-asset accounts, websites, domains, and server infrastructure that federal investigators linked to Harakat al-Muqawama al-Islamiyya, commonly known as Hamas, a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization. According to the Justice Department, Hamas controlled the seized infrastructure and cryptocurrency addresses on behalf of its military wing, the Al Qassam Brigades.

The disruption represents a series of investigative and seizure actions carried out across 2025 and 2026 rather than a single seizure conducted on September 1. Three unsealed cryptocurrency seizure warrants were issued on March 25, June 25, and October 10, 2025. Investigators relied on information obtained from multiple human sources to identify and trace cryptocurrency addresses allegedly being used to collect donations for the Al Qassam Brigades.

Those seizures resulted in approximately $560,000 in cryptocurrency being taken into federal custody. The Justice Department said the broader operation ultimately involved more than $560,000 in donations destined for Hamas.

Court filings provide additional detail on how federal authorities seized some of the digital assets. One warrant directed Tether Limited to remove USDT associated with identified cryptocurrency addresses and reissue an equivalent value to a law-enforcement-controlled address. The same warrant package instructed Binance to transfer the contents of specified virtual-asset accounts into secure wallets controlled by law enforcement.

The court records show that the investigation did not focus solely on funds already held in identified accounts. Federal authorities also sought to interfere with the underlying system used to direct prospective donors toward new cryptocurrency addresses.

According to the Justice Department, an encrypted group chat claiming an association with Hamas directed supporters to a fundraising website and provided potential donors with a rotating series of cryptocurrency addresses. The rotation of addresses created a moving financial trail that investigators were required to identify and trace as the operation continued.

The FBI’s Albuquerque Field Office subsequently worked with human sources to identify internet infrastructure associated with the Al Qassam Brigades and its principal website, AlQassam.ps. By seizing domains and servers supporting the operation, investigators gained the ability to interfere directly with the online fundraising system and intercept cryptocurrency donations that federal authorities say were intended for Hamas.

The seizure warrants reveal that the infrastructure operation extended across multiple domains and hosting providers.

One 2026 application sought seizure authority over alaqsaflood.org, host.alaqsaflood.org, and a supporting server identified in the court record as SERVER 172. The affidavit states that known and unknown actors used the infrastructure to support a cryptocurrency donation scheme intended to generate revenue for Hamas. Federal investigators alleged that a foreign person transferred funds from outside the United States into the country to register the infrastructure in furtherance of the fundraising operation.

A separate August 2026 warrant targeted a server supporting AlQassam.ps, identified by investigators as IP address 45.134.141.68. The supporting affidavit states that known and unknown actors allegedly used that server to support the cryptocurrency donation scheme. Investigators asserted probable cause that the server constituted property connected to transactions intended to promote the provision of material support or resources to a designated foreign terrorist organization.

The order governing that server instructed its infrastructure provider to redirect the system toward authoritative name servers controlled by the FBI, including ns1.fbi.seized.gov and ns2.fbi.seized.gov, prevent further modification or transfer of the server, and assist in propagating the changes through the Domain Name System. The government also planned to display a federal seizure notice once the infrastructure had been redirected.

That technical component allowed federal authorities to do more than remove a website from public access. Taking control of infrastructure used in a fundraising operation can interrupt communications between organizers and donors, prevent continued use of identified systems, and provide investigators with information about attempts to interact with those systems.

The Justice Department said the FBI obtained information concerning thousands of individuals who contacted Hamas online seeking to donate or attempting to donate, including through cryptocurrency and traditional financial methods. Federal authorities said the information will be used in future FBI counterterrorism efforts.

The existence of investigative information regarding those individuals does not, by itself, establish that every person identified committed a federal crime. The Justice Department described the material as investigative information obtained during the disruption operation and did not announce criminal charges against those thousands of individuals as part of the September 1 announcement.

Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg said the seizures were intended to deprive Hamas of resources used for recruitment, online radicalization, and terrorist operations.

U.S. Attorney Jeanine Ferris Pirro for the District of Columbia said federal authorities intend to continue targeting the organization’s fundraising networks and cryptocurrency.

FBI Cyber Division Assistant Director Brett Leatherman said Hamas used cryptocurrency and online platforms to solicit funds from donors around the world and move funds outside traditional financial channels. He said the FBI’s action captured donations intended for the organization while removing infrastructure supporting the fundraising operation.

FBI Albuquerque Special Agent in Charge Justin A. Garris said reducing the organization’s ability to receive donations and creating distrust between the organization and its prospective donors were central objectives of the operation.

The financial seizures also demonstrate how cryptocurrency enforcement can differ from conventional asset seizure. Digital assets can move across blockchain networks at any hour and across national borders without relying on traditional banking hours. Court filings in the investigation specifically noted the continuous transferability of virtual currency as a reason seizure warrants were sought to prevent the assets from being moved beyond government reach. The filings also describe the suspected funds as potentially subject to civil and criminal forfeiture under federal terrorism and money-laundering authorities.

The investigation is being conducted by the FBI Albuquerque Field Office in coordination with the FBI’s Counterterrorism Division, Cyber Division, and New York Field Office.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Tejpal Chawla for the District of Columbia and Trial Attorney Jacques Singer-Emery of the National Security Division’s National Security Cyber Section are prosecuting the case. Trial Attorney Robert MacDonald of the National Security Division’s Counterterrorism Section and the October 7th Task Force is providing substantial assistance.

The September 1 announcement publicly disclosed the results of multiple court-authorized financial and infrastructure actions spanning more than a year. The operation combined information from human sources, blockchain tracing, cryptocurrency seizures, domain and server seizures, and counterterrorism investigative authorities to disrupt both the financial flow and the digital systems supporting the alleged fundraising network.

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The Court-Authorized Seizures Allowed the FBI to Seize $560,000 in Cryptocurrency and Take Control of Domains and Servers that Hamas Used to Raise Money and Recruit Supporters

Seizure affidavits below.

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U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia — court-authorized seizure warrant applications, affidavits, and related forfeiture records concerning Hamas-linked cryptocurrency accounts, domains, and server infrastructure, including Case Nos. 25-sz-20, 25-sz-34, 25-sz-42, 26-sz-45, and 26-sz-49.

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