Key Points
- The United States Department of Justice filed criminal charges against several Hamas leaders in February of this year.
- The charges have now been unsealed, with officials citing the death of political leader Ismail Haniyeh in July.
- Haniyeh and others are accused of "conspiracy to provide material support for acts of terrorism resulting in death".
The United States Department of Justice has announced criminal charges against Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar and other senior militants in connection with the October 7 attack in Israel.
The charging document, filed under seal in federal court in New York City and dated 1 February, targets six leaders of the group — including political leader Ismail Haniyeh, who was .
They are accused of "conspiracy to provide material support for acts of terrorism resulting in death" along with six other counts.
The charges were filed under seal "to position the United States to be ready to take into custody" Haniyeh and the other defendants, a Justice Department official said in a statement.
The official cited Haniyeh's death — which Hamas and Iran say was an Israeli assassination — and unspecified "recent developments in the region", for the unsealing.
Ismail Haniyeh was killed in late July in Iran. Source: AAP / Hassan Ammar/AP
Hamas-led militants stormed into southern Israel on October 7, killing 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies.
Since then, Israel's assault on Gaza has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians in the enclave, according to its health ministry.
The attacks killed at least 43 American citizens, according to the complaint, and resulted in at least 10 Americans being taken as hostages or missing.
It's the first effort by US law enforcement to formally call out those behind the attack.
Who is Yahya Sinwar?
Sinwar, 61, was elected as Hamas' leader in Gaza in 2017
He was after the killing of Ismail Haniyeh in July, as the most powerful Hamas leader left alive following Haniyeh's death.
Israel has accused Sinwar of being the architect behind Hamas' October 7 attack, sits atop the country's most-wanted list and has been in hiding since.
He is believed to have spent most of the past 10 months living in tunnels under Gaza, and it is unclear how much contact he has with the outside world.
Who else has been charged?
Along with Sinwar and Haniyeh, those named in the charges include Mohammad Al-Masri — also known as Mohammed Deif — the former commander-in-chief of Hamas' military wing, who is .
Also charged was Marwan Issa, who was the deputy commander of the al-Qassam Brigades from approximately 2007 until his reported death in March.
Qatar-based Khaled Meshaal, the head of the group's diaspora office responsible for overseeing Hamas' presence outside of Gaza, was also charged.
The final man charged was Ali Baraka, Hamas' head of national relations, who is also based outside of Gaza.
What's next?
The impact of the case may be mostly symbolic given that Sinwar is believed to be hiding out in tunnels beneath the Gaza Strip, Haniyeh is dead, and both Al-Masri and Issa are also believed to have been killed.
But US officials say at least one person, whom they did not name, is expected to be brought to New York for prosecution.
"The charges unsealed today are just one part of our effort to target every aspect of Hamas' operations," US attorney-general Merrick Garland said in a statement on Tuesday.
"These actions will not be our last."
Authorities investigating death of Israeli-American hostage
Garland said that US authorities were also investigating the killing of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a 23-year-old Israeli-American taken hostage by Hamas during the October 7 attack.
His death was announced over the weekend, along with five other hostages.
