US imposes third round of sanctions on Hamas following attack

The United States on Tuesday imposed a third round of sanctions aimed at Palestinian group Hamas following its attack last month on Israel, targeting leaders and financiers of the group.

The US Treasury Department said in a statement the action, taken in coordination with Britain, targeted key Hamas officials and the mechanisms through which Iran provides support to Hamas and a Palestinian militant group that is an ally of Hamas and took part in the October 7 attack on Israel from Gaza.

"The United States will continue to work with our partners, including the UK, to deny Hamas the ability to raise and use funds to carry out its atrocities," Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in the statement.

"Hamas’s actions have caused immense suffering. Together with our partners we are decisively moving to degrade Hamas’s financial infrastructure, cut them off from outside funding, and block the new funding channels they seek to finance their heinous acts."

Israel vowed to wipe out Hamas after the group's fighters burst across the fence around the Gaza enclave on October 7 and rampaged through Israeli towns, killing civilians. Israel says 1,200 people were killed and around 240 were dragged back to Gaza as hostages in the deadliest day of its 75-year history.

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Medical officials in Hamas-run Gaza say more than 11,000 people are confirmed dead from Israeli strikes, around 40 percent of them children, and countless others trapped under rubble. Around two thirds of Gaza's 2.3 million people have been made homeless, unable to escape the crowded territory where food, fuel, fresh water and medical supplies are running out.

Tuesday's move freezes any US assets of those targeted and generally bars Americans from dealing with them. Those that engage in certain transactions with them also risk being hit with sanctions.

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