Treasury blocks Hamas-linked fundraising network in France and Algeria

The U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) blocked the property and interests in property of three individuals and two nonprofit organizations tied to Hamas under Executive Order 13224, as amended by Executive Order 13886. The action was issued on October 2, 2026, and published in the Federal Register of Wednesday, October 7, 2026 (Vol. 91, No. 193, Notices, pp. 64224–64225). All property and interests in property subject to U.S. jurisdiction of the named persons are blocked, and U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them.

The notice adds the names to OFAC’s Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List (SDN List), the roster of targets whose assets are frozen under the U.S. terrorism sanctions programme. The legal basis is E.O. 13224 of September 23, 2001, “Blocking Property and Prohibiting Transactions With Persons Who Commit, Threaten To Commit, or Support Terrorism,” as amended by E.O. 13886 of September 9, 2019, “Modernizing Sanctions To Combat Terrorism.” Every entry carries the tag [SDGT], marking a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, and a secondary sanctions warning under section 1(b) of E.O. 13224, as amended by E.O. 13886.

The individuals designated

• Faouzi Barika, born 13 February 1991 in Tebessa, Algeria, a French national with addresses in St. Andrew de Cubzac, France; designated under section 1(a)(iii)(C) of E.O. 13224 for having materially assisted, sponsored or provided financial, material or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Hamas.
• Amel Oualid (also known as Amel Bouchekif), born 3 July 1987 in Oran, Algeria, an Algerian national with addresses in Saint Etienne, France; designated under section 1(a)(iii)(C) of E.O. 13224 for having materially assisted, sponsored or provided financial, material or technological support for, or goods or services to or in support of, Saleem Abdallah Saleem Al-Zaq.
• A third individual, designated under section 1(a)(iii)(A) of E.O. 13224 for being owned, controlled or directed by, or having acted or purported to act for or on behalf of, directly or indirectly, Hamas.

Two charities tied to the network

• Association Baraka, 6 Impasse Marie Louise Gachet, St. Andrew de Cubzac 33240, France, with website associationbaraka.fr and email contact@associationbaraka.fr; established 13 October 2023; registered charity No. W331005557 (France); designated under section 1(a)(iii)(A) of E.O. 13224 for being owned, controlled or directed by, or acting for, Faouzi Barika.
• Ensemble C Mieux (also known as “Together It’s Better”), 58 rue Parmentier, Saint Etienne 42100, France; established 1 July 2024; registered charity No. W423015492 (France); designated under section 1(a)(iii)(A) of E.O. 13224 for being owned, controlled or directed by, or acting for, Amel Oualid.

OFAC classifies both organizations as charities or nonprofit organizations, and both carry the [SDGT] tag. The addresses and nationalities place the network between France and Algeria, with the two charities registered in France and the individuals holding French and Algerian nationality.

Legal effect and secondary sanctions risk

The notice states that all property and interests in property subject to U.S. jurisdiction of the designated persons are blocked, and that U.S. persons are generally prohibited from engaging in transactions with them. Each entry also carries a secondary sanctions risk under section 1(b) of E.O. 13224, as amended by E.O. 13886, a warning aimed at non-U.S. banks, payment processors and aid organizations that might otherwise deal with the names. The notice was signed by Lisa M. Palluconi, Deputy Director of OFAC, under the authority of E.O. 13224, as amended.

The designations extend U.S. terrorism sanctions to a small diaspora fundraising cluster operating between France and Algeria, exposing any bank, payment processor or NGO that touches the named individuals or charities to U.S. blocking measures. The same issue of the Federal Register carries a companion OFAC notice (FR Doc. 2026–20526) recording unblockings and the removal of 18 duplicate entries from the SDN List, the NS–PLC List and the SSI List.

Source: Federal Register, Vol. 91, No. 193, October 7, 2026, Notices, pp. 64224–64225 (official reference: FR Doc. 2026–20525; companion notice FR Doc. 2026–20526).