WASHINGTON — The Justice Department announced Tuesday that criminal charges have been filed against Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and other militants in connection with the Oct. 7, 2023, shooting in Israel.
The criminal complaint, filed in federal court in New York City, includes charges of conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, resulting in death.
“The charges made public today are just one part of our effort to address every aspect of Hamas’s operations,” Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a video statement. “These actions will not be the last.”
Sinwar was appointed general leader of Hamas after the assassination of Ismail Haniyeh in Iran and is at the top of Israel’s most wanted list. He is believed to have spent the past 10 months living primarily in tunnels under Gaza, and it is unclear how much contact he has with the outside world.
Other Hamas leaders charged include Haniyeh; Marwan Issa, the deputy leader of Hamas’s armed wing in Gaza who helped plan last year’s attack; Khaled Mashaal, another deputy to Haniyeh and a former leader of the group; Mohammed al-Masri and Ali Baraka.