The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) released on Tuesday (3) a series of charges against six leaders of the terrorist group Hamas related to terrorism, conspiracy to murder and evasion of sanctions.
While these charges relate to “financing, directing, and overseeing a decades-long campaign to assassinate American citizens and endanger the national security of the United States,” the focus of the indictment is the October 7, 2023 attacks in Israel, in which 1,200 people were killed and another 251 were kidnapped by Hamas.
Among the leaders indicted is the terrorist group’s new political leader, Yahya Sinwar, who replaced Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in Tehran in late July in an attack blamed on Israel. Haniyeh and two other Hamas leaders who have already died were included in the Justice Department’s indictment: Mohammad Al-Masri and Marwan Issa.
“For decades, Hamas and its leadership have been dedicated to eradicating the State of Israel and murdering, maiming, and brutalizing anyone — including dozens of Americans — who stood in their way,” Damian Williams, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, said in a statement released by the DOJ.
“The Hamas massacres of October 7 — in which more than 40 American citizens were murdered — are just the latest act of savagery carried out by Hamas,” he added.
The DOJ noted that the maximum sentences for the crimes attributed to Hamas leaders range from 20 years in prison to life in prison and death. The sentences will be determined by a federal judge and the FBI is continuing to investigate the case, the department said.
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