Last October 7 Israel It suffered the most devastating attack in its 75-year history. Hundreds of Hamas militants launched an unprecedented offensive, killing almost a thousand Israeli civilians. The Palestinian group exploited a series of serious errors in the security chain. hebrew state to deal a surprise blow to your enemy. The operation was partially financed with cryptocurrencies.
Between August 2021 and June this year, Islamic Resistance Movement According to a forensic analysis by Israeli firm BitOK, published by ‘The Wall Street Journal’, the digital currency from which the acronym Hamas is derived would have collected up to $41 million. This method would allow them to avoid sanctions imposed by countries such as: United States of America and continue to improve its military capabilities.
A large part of Hamas’ budget relies on smuggling as well as taxes it collects from businesses it controls in the Gaza Strip. But almost since its founding in 1987, its leaders have positioned themselves outside the world. occupied territories related to Palestine to seek financing Jordan, Syria, Sweetcorn, Türkiye anyone Taste, current operations. With Iranian The group has channeled foreign economic support as its main ally. complex business networksBut sanctions They also enabled them to bet on crypto assets.
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Both Israel and United States of America They have been trying to stop this economic flow for years. Three days after the devastating attack, Israeli police froze several accounts linked to a “fundraising campaign launched by Hamas.” Nearly 190 accounts containing “tens of millions of dollars” have been seized in the last two years. BinanceThe world’s largest crypto trading platform.
Following these losses, Hamas signaled that it would move away from cryptocurrencies to channel its revenues this year. Blockchain on paper — technology Supporting this decentralized payment method allows you to bypass banking checks and make transactions without revealing your identity, but it also opens the door to monitoring some transactions. Additionally, according to research firm TRM Labs, the intervention of the Israeli police would have led to a “low amount of donations” after the attack.
Hezbollah and Islamic Jihad
Hamas is not the only Palestinian or anti-Israeli group that has resorted to virtual currencies to finance itself. This situation Palestinian Islamic JihadParticipating in the blitzkrieg operation against the Jewish State, which could manage to channel up to 91 million between December 2021 and last June, according to British analytics company Elliptic. Lebanese Shiite militias Hezbollah In some cases, he also resorted to this strategy, which was torpedoed by the security apparatus. Jerusalem.
Due to their opacity, cryptocurrencies have attracted all kinds of illegal uses. drug traffic to cyber crime or money laundering. The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has warned that the sector “is at risk of becoming a safe haven for financial transactions”. criminals And terrorists“. Considering that there is 5% in 2020 attacks A year ago, a lawyer warned that “we now think it could reach 20%” of those financed by crypto assets. United Nations ‘To Bloomberg.