Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

US sanctions online site 'Gaza Now' and its founder for allegedly supporting Hamas

The U.S. has imposed sanctions on an online media site called Gaza Now and its founder Mustafa Ayash, for allegedly supporting Hamas

Fatima Hussein
Wednesday 27 March 2024 12:29 EDT
Hamas Sanctions
Hamas Sanctions (Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

The U.S. on Wednesday imposed sanctions on online media site Gaza Now and its founder Mustafa Ayash for allegedly supporting Hamas.

U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control says that after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas against Israel — the online entity began a fundraising effort in support of the militant organization.

Gaza Now's Arabic channel has more than 300,000 followers on social media channel X, formerly known as Twitter, and a large following on the encrypted chat platform Telegram.

Included in the sanctions are firms Al-Qureshi Executives and Aakhirah Ltd., and their director Aozma Sultana, who are alleged to have partnered on multiple fundraising efforts alongside Gaza Now.

The sanctions were imposed in collaboration with the U.K.’s Office of Foreign Sanctions Implementation.

Treasury Under Secretary Brian Nelson said in a statement that the U.S. and its partners "will continue to leverage our tools to disrupt Hamas’ ability to facilitate further attacks.”

A representative for Gaza Now and Ayash were not immediately available. The sanctions block access to U.S. property and bank accounts and prevent those designated from doing business with Americans.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in