U.S. Lawmakers Push Treasury to Designate Hamas-Linked Advocacy Group as Terrorist Organization
Republican congressmen are pushing Treasury to designate the PCPA as a terrorist group—citing captured documents from Gaza that reveal direct Hamas coordination in flotilla funding and operations
Representatives Andy Barr (R-KY) and Jefferson Shreve (R-IN), both members of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, sent a letter November 3, 2025 to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent urging the department to formally designate the Palestinian Conference for Palestinians Abroad (PCPA) as a terrorist organization and Hamas affiliate under Executive Order 13224.
The congressional push comes amid newly uncovered documents from Gaza revealing direct coordination between the PCPA and Hamas leadership, including the group’s role in funding flotillas attempting to reach Gaza. Mounting evidence connects the organization—which operates under the guise of a civil society group representing the Palestinian diaspora—to Hamas’s international operations and fundraising networks.
Captured Hamas Documents Expose Direct Links
Documents captured by the Israeli military in Gaza and released by Israel’s Foreign Ministry provide damning evidence of the PCPA-Hamas connection. The cache includes an official 2021 letter from slain Hamas Political Bureau Chief Ismail Haniyeh directly endorsing the PCPA and calling for unity with its chairman. A separate roster identifies senior PCPA operatives who are known Hamas officials.
Among those listed are Zaher Birawi, head of PCPA’s operations in the United Kingdom and a veteran organizer of demonstration flotillas to Gaza. Also named is Saif Abu Kashk, a Spanish-based operative who serves as CEO of Cyber Neptune—a front company that owns dozens of ships participating in the recent “Sumud” flotilla.
Hamas Officials at PCPA’s Helm
The PCPA’s leadership structure reveals deep Hamas connections at the highest levels. Majed Al-Zeer, who was designated by the U.S. Treasury Department in October 2024 as “the senior Hamas representative in Germany,” serves as First Deputy Chairman of the PCPA’s General Authority—a position he has held since co-founding the organization in 2017, according to his personal website.
Adding to concerns about the organization’s terrorist ties, Abduljabar Said—a senior Hamas Political Bureau member—holds the position of Head of the Education Committee at the PCPA’s General Secretariat while simultaneously serving as a tenured professor at Qatar University. Said has publicly praised Hamas’s October 7, 2023 attack on Israel and called on Muslims worldwide to join the group’s jihad.
Operating as Hamas’s International Network
Established in 2017 in Turkey, the PCPA functions as Hamas’s representative body abroad, operating what Israeli officials describe as de facto embassies for the terrorist organization. The organization has been described an umbrella group affiliated with international networks of the Muslim Brotherhood that Hamas uses to operate in regions where the terrorist group cannot function openly. Israel designated the PCPA as a terrorist organization in January 2022.
Call for Swift Action
Representatives Barr and Shreve concluded their letter by urging swift action: “We urge you to act swiftly to designate the PCPA and its affiliates, impose targeted sanctions, and hold accountable those who facilitate terrorism under the guise of civil society.”
The Treasury Department has not yet publicly responded to the congressional request. If designated, the PCPA would join a growing list of organizations sanctioned by the United States for supporting Hamas’s terrorist activities, potentially exposing its members, donors, and associated entities to criminal prosecution and financial penalties.