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The crypto market has been highly volatile this week, with the increasing geopolitical tensions. The escalating conflict between Israel and Hamas has spooked investors in recent days, as evidenced by the recent performance of the global financial markets, let alone the cryptocurrency segment.
Meanwhile, amid the rising tensions, the Israeli police have taken decisive action by freezing cryptocurrency accounts allegedly used by the Palestinian militant group Hamas for fundraising. The move comes as part of a broader effort to clamp down on cryptocurrency channels exploited by terrorist organizations. Israeli authorities have engaged with prominent cryptocurrency exchange Binance to locate and shut down these accounts.
Police Disrupts Hamas Crypto Fundings
In response to recent hostilities initiated by Hamas, Israel has declared a state of war against the group. The conflict has led to devastating casualties on both sides.
In a bid to disrupt Hamas’ financial operations, the cyber division of Israel Police’s Lahav 433 unit has successfully targeted cryptocurrency accounts employed by the group for soliciting funds via social media.
This operation was a collaborative endeavor involving Lahav 433, the National Bureau for Counter Terror Financing (NBCTF) under the Ministry of Defense, Shin Bet, and other intelligence agencies. Their primary objective was to identify and incapacitate cryptocurrency infrastructures susceptible to exploitation by terrorist groups for fundraising purposes.
Meanwhile, Palestine’s most prominent militant group, Hamas, launched a fundraising campaign on various social platforms, encouraging the public to deposit cryptocurrencies into their accounts. In a swift response, the cyber unit, along with NBCTF, identified these accounts and promptly froze them. Notably, Binance, a prominent cryptocurrency exchange platform, played a crucial role in assisting with the seizure of these funds.
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Funds to Benefit National Treasury Amid Israel-Hamas War
The funds seized from Hamas’ cryptocurrency accounts are intended for transfer to Israel’s national treasury, further undermining the group’s financial operations. This significant development underscores Israel’s commitment to countering terrorism financing and dismantling the financial assets of terrorist organizations.
Additionally, this incident adds to the ongoing scrutiny surrounding cryptocurrency platforms’ compliance with anti-money laundering regulations and their role in facilitating illicit activities.
Although this move marks a noteworthy step in Israel’s efforts to disrupt Hamas’s financing, it also raises questions about the broader implications for cryptocurrency regulation and security in a world where digital assets are increasingly integrated into financial systems.
Notably, in March, the US Commodities Futures and Trading Commission (CFTC) filed a lawsuit against Binance’s CEO Changpeng “CZ” Zhao, alleging that the company’s executives were aware of “HAMAS transactions” on the platform. Meanwhile, Israel had previously seized around 190 Binance accounts, suspecting ties to terrorist groups since 2021.
Also Read: Binance’s Ambitious $1 Billion Crypto Industry Recovery Initiative Has Failed, Bloomberg
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