US imposes new sanctions on Hamas members, cryptocurrency exchange | NHK WORLD-JAPAN News

The US Treasury Department has imposed sanctions on nine individuals of the Palestinian Islamist group Hamas and a Gaza-based cryptocurrency exchange in an effort to stem the revenue flow to the group.

The department announced on Wednesday that the sanction targets Hamas senior officials and other members managing assets in a secret Hamas investment portfolio, as well as the virtual currency exchange used for money transfers and other purposes.

The department said in the announcement that in addition to the funds Hamas receives from Iran, the group’s global portfolio of investment generates a large amount of revenue through its assets worth hundreds of millions of dollars.

It added that companies in Sudan, Algeria, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and other countries managed the funds under the guise of legitimate businesses.

It said the designations are part of the US continuous efforts to “root out Hamas’s sources of revenue.”

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in the announcement, “We will continue to take all steps necessary to deny Hamas terrorists the ability to raise and use funds to carry out atrocities and terrorize the people of Israel.”