BREAKING: DOJ announces charges against senior Hamas leaders over October 7 attack

Attorney General Merrick Garland announced on Tuesday that the Justice Department has charged six senior Hamas leaders with terrorism, murder conspiracy, and sanctions-evasion counts.  

According to a press release from the DOJ, those charged are Ismail Haniyeh, Yahya Sinwar, Mohammad Al-Masri, Marwan Issa, Khaled Meshaal, and Ali Baraka. "The defendants charged in the complaint are all senior leaders of Hamas who have orchestrated, overseen, and supported Hamas’s decades-long campaign of terrorism, including the October 7 Hamas Massacres," the press release stated.

The six senior Hamas leaders were charged with conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization resulting in death, conspiracy to provide material support for acts of terrorism resulting in death, conspiracy to murder US nationals, conspiracy to bomb a place of public use resulting in death, conspiracy to use weapons of mass destruction resulting in death, and conspiracy to finance terrorism, conspiracy to violate the international emergency economic powers act.

Haniyeh was the chairman of Hamas’s Politburo, the terrorist organization’s political branch, from 2017 until "his reported death on or about July 31." He was previously the deputy chairman of the Politburo and the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip. Sinwar, also known as Abu Ibrahim, is the leader of Hamas, and "previously, beginning in approximately 2017, he was the leader of Hamas in the Gaza Strip, and is one of the founders of the al-Qassam Brigades."

Al-Masri, also known as Mohammed Deif and al Khalid al-Deif, held the position of commander in chief of the al-Qassam Brigades from around 2002 until his reported death on or about July 13. Issa, also known as Abu Baraa, held the position of deputy commander of the al-Qassam Brigades from around 2007 until his reported death on or about March 10.

Meshaal, also known as Abu al-Waleed, served as chairman of Hamas’ Politburo between approximately 2004 and 2017 and now serves as the head of Hamas’ diaspora office, "effectively responsible for Hamas’ official presence outside of the Gaza Strip and the West Bank." Baraka has led Hamas’ National Relations Abroad since around 2019 and previously served as Hamas’ representative in Lebanon.

"The charges unsealed today are just one part of our effort to target every aspect of Hamas' operations. These actions will not be our last. The Justice Department has a long memory. We will pursue the terrorists responsible for murdering Americans and those who illegally provide them with material support for the rest of their lives," Garland said.

The Attorney General said in a statement, "The Justice Department has charged Yahya Sinwar and other senior leaders of Hamas for financing, directing, and overseeing a decades-long campaign to murder American citizens and endanger the national security of the United States."

"On October 7th, Hamas terrorists, led by these defendants, murdered nearly 1200 people, including over 40 Americans, and kidnapped hundreds of civilians. This weekend, we learned that Hamas murdered an additional six people they had kidnapped and held captive for nearly a year, including Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a 23 year old Israeli American. We are investigating Hersh’s murder, and each and every one of Hamas’ brutal murders of Americans, as an act of terrorism. The charges unsealed today are just one part of our effort to target every aspect of Hamas’ operations. These actions will not be our last."

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