https://docs.google.com/document/d/1pDSGzurwcqnFatEFJChGJ9marn5OKN3WhB96YD81Ajk/edit?tab=t.0
Location: United States
On October 15, 2024, the U.S. Treasury Department and the Canadian government jointly sanctioned the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network, branding it a “sham charity” that secretly funds the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP), a terrorist group linked to violent attacks. Based in Vancouver, Canada, Samidoun has organized pro-Palestinian protests on U.S. college campuses and claims to advocate for Palestinian prisoners, yet Treasury officials assert it “masquerades as [a] charitable actor” while directly supporting terror operations. Charlotte Kates, the organization’s international coordinator, openly praised recent violence, calling Hamas’s October 7, 2023, attacks on Israeli civilians “a brave and heroic operation” and stating that “the so-called Israeli state is a settler colony, and it never had the right to exist.” Samidoun’s close ties to the PFLP, a Marxist-Leninist faction designated a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) in the U.S. since 1997, have also led to its ban in Germany and Israel. Khaled Barakat, Kates's husband and a senior PFLP leader, was sanctioned as part of the crackdown due to his role in PFLP’s recruitment and fundraising efforts to fuel violence in Gaza and the West Bank. Former U.S. Attorney Barbara McQuade underscored the impact of these sanctions, stating, “It prevents people from making financial contributions to them,” thereby cutting off a critical funding stream to PFLP affiliates. While Samidoun is not an FTO, it is designated as a Specially Designated Global Terrorist (SDGT), which means it is recognized as a supporter of terrorism and faces U.S. sanctions that freeze its assets and prohibit U.S. persons from any transactions with it. Unlike an FTO designation, which criminalizes all material support to the group and imposes stricter legal penalties, the SDGT designation targets financial and transactional activities, effectively cutting off Samidoun’s access to U.S.-based funds and international financial networks. This allows the Treasury to restrict Samidoun’s operations without the extensive legal processes required for FTO designation.
Location: United States/Iran
On October 22, 2024, federal prosecutors unveiled charges against Ruhollah Bazghandi, a brigadier general in Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and three associates for orchestrating a murder-for-hire plot targeting Masih Alinejad, a prominent Iranian-American journalist and critic of the Iranian regime. According to the indictment, Bazghandi and his network contracted an Eastern European crime syndicate to carry out the assassination attempt in New York City, marking the first time a high-ranking IRGC official has been charged in such a plot on U.S. soil. FBI Director Christopher Wray stated, “Today’s indictment exposes the full extent of Iran’s plot to silence an American journalist for criticizing the Iranian regime,” as the FBI disrupted the plot just before an armed suspect could carry out the attack. Alinejad, who has been forced to live in safe houses and under protection, reacted to the news with both sadness and resolve: “I was so excited because now we have proof… from inside Iran, to kill a U.S. citizen,” she said. The indictment highlights the Iranian regime’s use of extraterritorial violence to target dissidents, a move that Attorney General Merrick Garland emphasized the U.S. will counter relentlessly to safeguard American citizens and freedom of expression.
Location: United States
On October 26, 2024, a 39-year-old Orthodox Jewish man was ambushed and shot multiple times while on his way to his synagogue in Chicago. The shooter, identified as 22-year-old Sidi Mohamed Abdallahi, allegedly approached the man from behind, fired multiple rounds into his shoulder, and later shouted “Allahu akbar” as he exchanged gunfire with responding police officers and paramedics. Video footage captured the chaos as Abdallahi fired toward an ambulance and a man walking his dog before disappearing into an alley, only to reemerge and engage officers for two and a half intense minutes. Now facing 14 felony charges, Abdallahi, reportedly an asylum seeker from Mauritania according to the New York Post, was charged with terrorism on November 1, with Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling emphasized, “We will never tolerate violence that’s rooted in hate and bigotry.” Evidence of targeted antisemitism was reportedly discovered on the suspect’s phone, a revelation that has amplified fear among Jewish communities already on edge from the global rise in antisemitic incidents following the Hamas-Israel conflict. The shooting has sparked citywide calls for justice, as residents demand reassurance that the streets will be safe from such violent hatred. Authorities have stated that the attacker acted alone, and say there is no reason to fear a network of similar attacks.
Location: Afghanistan
In a chilling move, the Taliban has issued a new rule forbidding Afghan women from hearing each other’s voices, a restriction that could effectively prevent women from even holding private conversations. Announced by Khalid Hanafi, the minister for virtue and vice, this latest edict extends the Taliban's oppressive grip on Afghan women’s lives. “Even when an adult female prays and another female passes by, she must not pray loudly enough for them to hear,” Hanafi declared, adding that “God will be helping us in each step we take.” Afghan women are now voicing profound despair, with one Kabul resident stating, “They are waging an all-out war against us, and we have no one in the world to hear our voices.” The Taliban’s stringent bans have led some women to question their very existence, as they grapple with extreme isolation and oppression, which advocates warn may drive many to despair.
Location: United States
During a recent Friday sermon at the Islamic House of Wisdom in Dearborn, Michigan, Imam Mohammad Ali Elahi delivered a series of incendiary remarks, accusing Zionists of being “enemies of peace” who “love blood, misery, crime, and corruption.” Elahi, an Iranian-born cleric with longstanding ties to Iran’s regime, denounced the American government’s support for Israel as “shameful,” stating, “The taxpayers are paying for this kind of violence and terrorism.” Citing Quranic verses, he condemned what he described as Israel’s actions against Palestinians, asserting that words like “occupation” and “genocide” do not fully capture the scale of Israel’s “brutality and barbarism.” Elahi also lambasted President Joe Biden, suggesting he is “sleeping” while the nation’s foreign policy is allegedly influenced by AIPAC, the pro-Israel lobbying group. The imam’s rhetoric and alleged alignment with Iran’s agenda have drawn scrutiny from U.S. lawmakers, especially given reports from George Washington University identifying him as a figure advancing pro-Iranian propaganda within the United States. The report highlights his extensive ties to the Iranian regime, beginning with his early career as head of the Iranian Navy’s political-ideological office in 1982. Despite his associations, Elahi continues to engage with prominent U.S. political figures. His visibility and political involvement underscore the influence individuals with ties to the Iranian regime can wield within American communities.
