| Entity | Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC); Saleem Abdallah Saleem al-Zaq; Faouzi Barika; Amel Oualid; Association Baraka; Ensemble C Mieux; Hamas Al-Qassam Brigades |
|---|---|
| Date | 2 Oct 2026 |
| Instrument | Executive Order 13224, as amended by E.O. 13886 |
Treasury targets a Gaza-based Hamas military wing operative and two France-based individuals plus their sham charities for moving more than $2 million, including hundreds of thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency, to Hamas.
On October 2, 2026, the Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated Saleem Abdallah Saleem al-Zaq, a Hamas Al-Qassam Brigades member, along with France-based Faouzi Barika, Amel Oualid, and their affiliated entities Association Baraka and Ensemble C Mieux, for a multi-year financing network that moved more than $2 million to Hamas.
The Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control designated a member of Hamas’s military wing and two France-based individuals with affiliated entities on October 2, 2026. The action targets a multi-year financing architecture that moved more than $2 million to Hamas through deceptive charitable fronts and cryptocurrency channels.
Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent stated: “Terrorist organizations like Hamas rely on sophisticated financial facilitators and fraudulent schemes designed to exploit the public to sustain their operations. Treasury will continue to identify, isolate, and impose consequences on those who provide Hamas with the financial lifelines it needs to survive.”
Saleem Abdallah Saleem al-Zaq is a Gaza-based battalion deputy in the Hamas military wing who oversees a financial network that has used various money services businesses and cryptocurrency wallets to transfer significant funds to the Hamas Al-Qassam Brigades. He also served as a photographer in the Hamas media office and attended official Hamas events where he was afforded close proximity to senior Hamas officials. Al-Zaq is designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Hamas.
Faouzi Barika and Amel Oualid operate from France, where they run purported charities ostensibly to raise money for humanitarian purposes to aid Gazan civilians. In reality, they partner with al-Zaq to raise and transfer money directly to him, which al-Zaq in turn funnels to Hamas. During a six-year period from 2020–2026, Barika, Oualid, and al-Zaq collected more than $2 million for Hamas, of which $1.5 million was collected after the October 7, 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. Barika and Oualid sent hundreds of thousands of dollars in cryptocurrency to al-Zaq. Al-Zaq has advertised both Barika’s and Oualid’s fundraising accounts on his own social media accounts.
Barika jointly established France-based Association Baraka with al-Zaq, which he uses as a mechanism to solicit public donations that are sent to al-Zaq for transfer to Hamas. Oualid established France-based Ensemble C Mieux, which she uses to raise money to send to al-Zaq and Hamas. Barika is designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Hamas. Oualid is designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for having materially assisted, sponsored, or provided financial, material, or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, al-Zaq. Association Baraka and Ensemble C Mieux are designated pursuant to E.O. 13224, as amended, for being owned, controlled, or directed by, directly or indirectly, Barika and Oualid, respectively.
Today’s designations were issued pursuant to Executive Order 13224, as amended by E.O. 13886. Hamas was designated by the U.S. Department of State pursuant to E.O. 13224 on October 31, 2001, and is also designated as a Foreign Terrorist Organization pursuant to section 219 of the Immigration and Nationality Act. The action aligns with a broad, multi-jurisdictional operation led by the Federal Bureau of Investigation to dismantle several Hamas fundraising ventures, including those active inside the United States, with coordination involving local law enforcement partners such as the New York Police Department.
As a result of the action, all property and interests in property of the designated persons that are in the United States or in the possession or control of U.S. persons are blocked and must be reported to OFAC. Any entities owned, directly or indirectly, individually or in the aggregate, 50 percent or more by one or more blocked persons are also blocked. Unless authorized by a general or specific license issued by OFAC, or exempt, OFAC’s regulations generally prohibit all transactions by U.S. persons or within the United States that involve any property or interests in property of blocked persons. Violations may result in civil or criminal penalties. Engaging in certain transactions involving the designated persons may also risk the imposition of secondary sanctions on participating foreign financial institutions.
WHY IT MATTERS: The designations isolate a concrete node that combined sham French charities, social-media advertising, money services businesses, and cryptocurrency wallets to move more than $2 million—including $1.5 million after October 7, 2023—into Hamas Al-Qassam Brigades channels. For founders, investors, and enterprise buyers in crypto wallets, exchanges, payment processors, and charitable platforms, the action signals elevated compliance exposure around any counterparties linked to Gaza-based Hamas military figures or France-based fundraising entities that advertise transfers to such figures.