U.S. authorities seize cryptocurrency accounts of Al-Qaeda, Al-Qassam Brigades, ISIS

August 13, 2020

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U.S. authorities disrupted the online fundraising campaigns and seized the cryptocurrency accounts of terrorist organizations Al-Qaeda, Al-Qassam Brigades, and Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

According to the U.S. Department of Just

ice (DOJ), three forfeiture complaints and a criminal complaint were unsealed on Thursday in the District of Columbia. The action represents the largest cryptocurrency seizure conducted by U.S. authorities involving terrorism

Al-Qaeda, Al-Qassam, and ISIS depend on sophisticated cyber tools and used social media to solicit cryptocurrency donations worldwide and fund their terror campaigns.

U.S. authorities obtained judicially-authorized warrants to seize millions of dollars and more than 300 cryptocurrency accounts as well as to disable four websites and four Facebook pages related to the terrorist organizations.

Al-Qassam Brigades Campaign

Al-Qassam Brigades is a military wing of Hamas, a Palestinian Sunni-Islamic fundamentalist militant organization. Its online cryptocurrency fundraising efforts started in 2019. The terrorist group posted a call for bitcoin donation on its social media and then moved its request to its official website.