The Justice Department seized more than $560,000 in cryptocurrency intended for Hamas and shut down domains and servers the organization used to solicit funds and recruit supporters, according to a DOJ announcement Tuesday.
U.S. Attorney Jeanine Pirro said in a statement that the action disrupted Hamas's digital infrastructure. "We will stop your fundraising for terror," Pirro said. "Your networks are not secure, your crypto is vulnerable." The seizure is part of an ongoing effort by federal law enforcement to target terrorist financing flows through digital assets.
The DOJ has intensified enforcement against cryptocurrency transfers to designated terrorist organizations over the past two years. Digital assets have become an alternative fundraising channel for groups seeking to bypass traditional financial monitoring systems. Law enforcement agencies have developed technical capabilities to trace and freeze crypto holdings, and Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control maintains lists of wallet addresses and platform accounts tied to sanctioned entities.
The scale of the seizure reflects both the volume of crypto flows toward Hamas and the DOJ's expanded capacity to identify and interdict them. A single seizure of this magnitude represents a snapshot of activity rather than the complete picture of fundraising attempts; agencies typically announce seizures after investigation and asset recovery are substantially complete.
This action follows a pattern of enforcement actions against cryptocurrency transfers to designated foreign terrorist organizations. The department has coordinated with financial platforms and blockchain analytics firms to identify wallets receiving donations and to freeze assets before they can be moved or converted.
The domains and servers shut down in this operation handled both fundraising solicitations and recruitment messaging. Pirro said the networks are not secure and the crypto is vulnerable. The timing of the announcement, released publicly rather than disclosed only in court filings, indicates the department wanted to communicate a deterrent message to other potential financial channels.
The $560,000 seizure is one of several crypto enforcement actions the DOJ has disclosed in 2026. Each action demonstrates law enforcement's ability to monitor blockchain transactions and move quickly once assets are identified, shrinking the window in which funds can be transferred or laundered. If the DOJ continues quarterly seizures at this rate, the fiscal year total could approach $2 million in disrupted crypto flows alone, though the true volume of attempted transfers likely exceeds announced seizures by a significant multiple.
