U.S. charges Hamas leaders over murder of 43 Americans

The United States unsealed a raft of “terrorism” and other charges against six Hamas leaders on Tuesday, accusing them of murdering at least 43 American citizens and taking hostage of 10 others during an attack on Israel on 7 October.

Charged were Hamas chief Yahya Sinwar; its late political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was killed in late July in Tehran; Mohammad Al-Masri, the former commander in chief of the al-Qassam Brigades (AQB) who is believed to have died in July; Marwan Issa, former deputy commander of the AQB who reportedly died earlier this year; Qatar-based Khaled Meshaal, head of the group’s diaspora office responsible for overseeing Hamas’s presence outside of Gaza; and Ali Baraka, head of National Relations, who is also based outside of Gaza.

The six are accused of “conspiracy to provide material support for acts of terrorism resulting in death” along with six other counts.

“The charges unsealed today are just one part of our effort to target every aspect of Hamas’s operations. These actions will not be our last,” US Attorney General Merrick Garland said in a statement.

Garland said that US authorities were also investigating the killing of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a 23-year-old Israeli-American taken hostage by Hamas on 7 October.