US, partners announce task force aimed at countering flow of money to Hamas

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The U.S. said on Monday that after Hamas’ assault on Israel last month, it and several allied nations established an international task force aimed countering the flow of money to the militant Palestinian group and supporting anti-terrorism efforts.

THE TAKE

Since 1,200 people were killed in the Oct. 7 attack, the U.S., UK and allies have sought to cut off funding for Hamas, which has been designated a terrorist group by Washington and other governments.

CONTEXT

The task force will enhance sharing of financial intelligence on terrorist-financing related matters and will discuss best practices and opportunities for additional actions and partnerships, the U.S. Treasury Department said in a statement.

It will also strengthen relations between the financial intelligence units, public authorities and the private sector to address the threat, the statement said.

The task force is made up of financial intelligence units from Australia, Canada, Estonia, France, Germany, Israel, Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Switzerland, the UK and the U.S. as well as other units.

Since the Oct. 7 attack, Washington has imposed several rounds of sanctions on Hamas. It has targeted the group’s investment portfolio and issued an alert to financial institutions on countering Hamas financing while senior officials have discussed the group’s access to funds on trips abroad.

KEY QUOTE

“The Oct. 7 terror attacks on Israel served as a grave reminder of a core mission of our FIUs: to detect, disrupt and prevent the financing of terrorism,” the statement said.

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