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| foundation = 1989
| defunct = 2001
| ___location = [[Richardson, Texas]], U.S.
| key_people = [[Mousa Abu Marzook]] <br />[[Ghassan Elashi]]
| homepage = [https://web.archive.org/*/http://www.hlf.org hlf.org]
}}
The '''Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development''' ('''HLF'''
Headquartered in [[Richardson, Texas]], and run by [[Palestinian-Americans]], the organization's stated mission was to "find and implement practical solutions for human suffering through humanitarian programs that impact the lives of the disadvantaged, disinherited, and displaced peoples suffering from man-made and natural disasters."<ref name="usblock">{{cite web |date=November 20, 2008 |title=Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons |url=http://www.ustreas.gov/offices/enforcement/ofac/sdn/t11sdn.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081109195856/http://www.ustreas.gov/offices/enforcement/ofac/sdn/t11sdn.pdf |archive-date=November 9, 2008 |access-date=November 24, 2008 |publisher=[[United States Department of the Treasury]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Solving the Necessity Conundrum: What the Drug War Can Teach Us About Due Process for U.S. Charities in the Fight Against International Terrorist Financing |url=https://www.icnl.org/resources/research/ijnl/solving-the-necessity-conundrum-what-the-drug-war-can-teach-us-about-due-process-for-u-s-charities-in-the-fight-against-international-terrorist-financing |access-date=2025-07-12 |website=ICNL |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>"[https://web.archive.org/web/19990221194319/http://www.hlf.org/contactus.htm Contact Us]." Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development. Retrieved on May 21, 2010.</ref>
In December 2001, the U.S. designated HLF a [[United States Department of State list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations|terrorist organization]], seized its assets, and closed the organization. At the time it was the largest Muslim charitable organization in the United States. It had been under [[FBI]] surveillance since 1994.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://archives.fbi.gov/archives/news/stories/2008/november/hlf112508|title=FBI — Holy Land Foundation Convictions}}</ref><ref name="ca5.uscourts.gov">{{Cite web|url=http://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions%5Cpub%5C09/09-10560-CR0.wpd.pdf|title=Revised January 13, 2012 "The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit" United States of America vs Mohammad El-Mezain; Ghassan Elashi; Shukri Abu Bakr; Mufid Abdulqader; Abdulrahman Odeh; Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, also known as HLF. " No. 09-10560, Filed December 7, 2011, pg. 7}}</ref> In 2004, a federal grand jury in [[Dallas, Texas]], charged HLF and five former officers and employees with providing material support to [[Hamas]] and related offenses. The government's assertion was that HLF distributed charity through local [[zakat]] (charity) committees located in the [[West Bank]] that paid stipends to the families of [[Palestinian suicide attacks|Palestinian suicide bombers]] and Hamas prisoners; that Hamas controlled those zakat committees; that by distributing charity through Hamas-controlled committees, HLF helped Hamas build a [[grassroots]] support amongst the [[Palestinian people]]; and that these charity front organizations served a dual purpose of laundering the money for all of Hamas's activities.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions%5Cpub%5C09/09-10560-CR0.wpd.pdf|title=Revised January 13, 2012 "The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit" United States of America vs Mohammad El-Mezain; Ghassan Elashi; Shukri Abu Bakr; Mufid Abdulqader; Abdulrahman Odeh; Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, also known as HLF. " No. 09-10560, Filed December 7, 2011, pg. 8}}</ref>
Simultaneously, in November 2004, U.S. [[Magistrate Judge]] Arlander Keys ruled that HLF, along with the [[Islamic Association of Palestine]] (IAP), were liable for the 1996 killing of 17-year-old American citizen David Boim in Israel.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2004-11-11-0411110231-story.html|title=3 Islamic fundraisers held liable in terror death|last=Cohen|first=Laurie|date=November 11, 2004 |website=chicagotribune.com|language=en-US|access-date=2019-10-03}}</ref>
The first criminal trial, in 2007, ended in the partial [[acquittal]] of one defendant and a [[hung jury]] on all other charges. At a retrial in 2008, the jury found all defendants guilty on all counts. The 2008 trial of the charity leaders was the "largest terrorism financing prosecution in American history."<ref>[[Agence France-Presse]][https://web.archive.org/web/20110529023526/http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5jQhamE6J-SM-obuNztsdmJD9imHQ November 24, 2008]</ref> In 2009, the founders of the organization were given sentences of between 15 and 65 years in prison for "funnelling $12 million to Hamas."<ref>[
The trial has been criticised by some NGOs, including [[Human Rights Watch]].<ref name=":2" /> Civil rights attorney Emily Ratner wrote that the use of anonymous and hearsay evidence by the prosecutors was "constitutionally questionable" at best.<ref name="br">{{cite web |last=Bridge Initiative Team |title=Factsheet: Holy Land Foundation |url=
== History ==
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According to the [[United States Department of Treasury]], HLF was making donations to Hamas run charities, ("[[zakat]] committees") and to schools "that served Hamas's ends by encouraging children to become [[suicide bomber]]s and to recruit suicide bombers by offering support to their families".<ref name="13224-e">{{cite web |title=Additional Background Information on Charities Designated Under Executive Order 13224 |url=http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/terrorist-illicit-finance/Documents/designationsum-.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130602150934/http://www.treasury.gov/resource-center/terrorist-illicit-finance/Documents/designationsum-.pdf |archive-date=2013-06-02 |access-date=2014-10-16 |publisher=Ustreas.gov}}</ref> While Treasury officials conceded that a "substantial amount" of the money raised went to worthy causes, they insisted that Holy Land's primary purpose had been to subsidize Hamas. Treasury officials had found that HLF provided the following amounts to "zakat" charities from 1992 to 2001: $366,584 to the Tulkarem Zakat Committee; $1,674,954 to the [[Islamic Charitable Society]] of Hebron ("ICS Hebron"); $475,715 to the Nablus Zakat Committee; $554,500 to the Jenin Zakat Committee; $494,252 to the Ramallah Zakat Committee; and $295,187 to the Qalqilia Zakat Committee. The Treasury argued that these charities were affiliated and controlled by Hamas despite functioning under the Israeli Military Administration. In addition, HLF sent $485,468 to the Islamic Science and Culture Committee from May 1991 until the committee was closed in 1996. Between 1992 and 2001 the HLF received $56 million in donations, and during 1995–2001 $12.4 million was spent outside the United States.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Revised January 13, 2012 "The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit" United States of America vs Mohammad El-Mezain; Ghassan Elashi; Shukri Abu Bakr; Mufid Abdulqader; Abdulrahman Odeh; Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, also known as HLF. " No. 09-10560, Filed December 7, 2011, pg. 10 |url=http://www.ca5.uscourts.gov/opinions%5Cpub%5C09/09-10560-CR0.wpd.pdf}}</ref> Repeated appeals to the courts by HLF to have the freeze lifted failed.<ref>{{cite court|litigants=Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development v. Ashcroft|vol=219|reporter=F. Supp. 2d|opinion=57|court=D.D.C.|date=2002), aff'd, 333 F.3d 156 (D.C. Cir. 2003), cert. denied, 540 U.S. 1218 (2004}}</ref>
In December 2005, the European Union froze its European assets.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/lex/LexUriServ/site/en/oj/2005/l_340/l_34020051223en00640066.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2006-01-07 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060107142924/http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/lex/LexUriServ/site/en/oj/2005/l_340/l_34020051223en00640066.pdf |archive-date=January 7, 2006 }}</ref>▼
On July 27, 2004, a federal [[grand jury]] in [[Dallas, Texas]], returned a 42-count indictment against the Holy Land Foundation.<ref name="ashcroft">{{cite web |author=Attorney General John Ashcroft |date=July 27, 2004 |title=Prepared Remarks re: Holy Land Foundation Indictment |url=http://www.justice.gov/archive/ag/speeches/2004/72704ag.htm |access-date=November 24, 2008 |publisher=United States Department of Justice}}</ref><ref>Peled. p. 91</ref> Charges included: [[conspiracy (crime)|conspiracy]], [[Providing material support for terrorism|providing material support]] to a [[U.S. State Department list of Foreign Terrorist Organizations|foreign terrorist organization]], [[tax evasion]], and [[money laundering]]. The indictment alleged that the Holy Land Foundation provided more than $12.4 million to individuals and organizations linked to Hamas from 1995 to 2001, when their assets were frozen. The indictment also named specific officers of the Holy Land Foundation: President Shukri Abu Baker; Chairman [[Ghassan Elashi]]; and Executive Director Haitham Maghawri, and four others: Mohammad el-Mezain, Akram Mishal, [[Mufid Abdulqader]], and Abdulraham Odeh. Five of the seven were arrested. Maghawri and Mishal have not been found, and are considered [[fugitive]]s.
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In December 2004, a federal judge in Chicago ruled that the Holy Land Foundation (along with the [[Islamic Association of Palestine]] and the [[Quranic Literacy Institute]]) was liable in a $156 million lawsuit for aiding and abetting the militant group Hamas in the death of David Boim, a 17-year-old U.S. citizen murdered by members of Hamas while visiting Israel in 1996.<ref>
{{cite news |date=December 8, 2004 |title=Hamas victim's family get $156m |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/middle_east/4080499.stm |access-date=November 24, 2008 |publisher=BBC}}</ref> This decision was the first time U.S. citizens or organizations were held liable under a 1990 federal law that permitted victims of terrorism to sue for civil damages.{{Citation needed|date=July 2025}} In 2007, this decision was reversed by the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago and sent back to the trial court.<ref>{{Cite news |date=2007-12-29 |title=U.S. court overturns $156 mln award in terror case |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/economy/us-court-overturns-156-mln-award-in-terror-case-idUSN29512171/ |access-date=2025-07-12 |work=Reuters |language=en}}</ref>
▲In December 2005, the European Union froze its European assets.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/lex/LexUriServ/site/en/oj/2005/l_340/l_34020051223en00640066.pdf |title=Archived copy |access-date=2006-01-07 |url-status=bot: unknown |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060107142924/http://europa.eu.int/eur-lex/lex/LexUriServ/site/en/oj/2005/l_340/l_34020051223en00640066.pdf |archive-date=January 7, 2006 }}</ref>
On July 3, 2007, [[Muslim Legal Fund of America]] agreed to fund the defense of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development against allegations by the government that the charity provided "material support" for terror groups by providing basic necessities (i.e. food, clothing, shelter, etc.) for Palestinians under the Israeli occupation.<ref>{{Cite web |title=StackPath |url=https://www.mlfa.org/mlfa-funds-defense-of-hlf-largest-american-muslim-charity/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210614083936/https://www.mlfa.org/mlfa-funds-defense-of-hlf-largest-american-muslim-charity/ |archive-date=2021-06-14 |access-date=2020-12-14 |website=www.mlfa.org}}</ref>
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In October 2008, the [[United States Department of the Treasury]]'s [[Office of Foreign Asset Control]] designated HLF a [[Specially Designated Global Terrorist]].<ref name="usblock" />
In 2008, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals reheard the Boim lawsuit en banc.<ref name="Rowe">{{cite web |last=Rowe |first=Laura B. |title=Ending Terrorism with Civil Remedies: Boim v. Holy Land Foundation and the Proper Framework of Liability |url=http://www.kentlaw.iit.edu/Documents/Academic%20Programs/7CR/v4-2/rowe.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131017084809/http://www.kentlaw.iit.edu/Documents/Academic%20Programs/7CR/v4-2/rowe.pdf |archive-date=2013-10-17 |access-date=2013-09-21 |publisher=Seventh Circuit Review vol 4 Iss. 3 spring 2008}}</ref> On November 3, 2008, the 7th Circuit upheld the $156 million award, agreeing that "'those who donate funds to a known terrorist group are responsible under U.S. law for the group's actions – even if the donors contend that they only intended to support the group's "humanitarian" activities."<ref>{{cite web |title=Boim v Holy Land Foundation |url=http://www.wlf.org/litigating/case_detail.asp?id=552 |publisher=Washington Legal Foundation}}</ref>
=== Related groups ===
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Because of the potential lengthy sentences for the [[criminal conviction]]s, the individual defendants were remanded into custody without [[bail]] pending any appeal.<ref>{{cite news|title=Guilty Verdicts in Holy Land Foundation Retrial |work=CBS 11 / TXA 21 Dallas Fort-Worth |date=November 24, 2008 |url=http://cbs11tv.com/local/holy.land.retrial.2.872727.html |access-date=November 24, 2008 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081210132823/http://cbs11tv.com/local/holy.land.retrial.2.872727.html |archive-date=December 10, 2008 }}</ref>
== Post-conviction ==
A 2011 [[NPR]] report claimed some of the people associated with this group were imprisoned in a highly restrictive [[Communication Management Unit]].<ref name=npr2/>
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In May 2012, Elashi, Baker, Abdulqader, and Odeh filed a petition for writ of [[certiorari]] with the [[Supreme Court of the United States|United States Supreme Court]], challenging their convictions on [[Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution|Sixth Amendment]] grounds and thereby requesting that the high court review their convictions.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=/docketfiles/11-1390.htm |title=''Elashi v. United States'' Docket|publisher=U.S. Supreme Court}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.scotusblog.com/case-files/elashi-v-united-states|title= Cases in the Pipeline, ''Elashi v. United States''|publisher=scotusblog.com}}</ref> The defendants asserted that the prosecution's use of two anonymous witnesses during their trial was impermissible as a matter of law.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://sblog.s3.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/06/11-1390-Elashi-v.-U.S.-Petition.pdf|title=Defendants' Petition for Certiorari, ''Elashi v. United States'', May 21, 2012}}</ref>
On October 29, 2012, the United States Supreme Court denied the petition for writ of certiorari.<ref>Elashi v. United States, No. 11-1390, 133 S. Ct. 525 (2012)</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.supremecourt.gov/Search.aspx?FileName=/docketfiles/11-1390.htm|title=Search – Supreme Court of the United States|website=www.supremecourt.gov}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Kampeas |first=Ron |url=
On December 12, 2024, Mufid Abdulqader was released from [[Federal Correctional Institution, Seagoville|Seagoville, TX Federal Correctional Institution]] after 16 years of imprisonment.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-12-12 |title=
=== Criticism of the trial ===
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=== Ongoing legal efforts ===
On November 24, 2022, [[Within Our Lifetime]], the Coalition for Civil Freedoms and the [[Samidoun]] Prisoner Network launched a campaign to release the Holy Land Five.<ref name="middleeasteye.net"/>
▲On December 12, 2024, Mufid Abdulqader was released from [[Federal Correctional Institution, Seagoville|Seagoville, TX Federal Correctional Institution]] after 16 years of imprisonment.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-12-12 |title= Instagram|url=https://www.instagram.com/yaakub_ira/p/DDe49e7Rs3k/}}</ref>
=== Prosecution response ===
Levitt has claimed in response that the [[United States Agency for International Development|USAID]] did not properly vet recipients.<ref name=":4">{{Cite web |title=Better Late than Never |url=https://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/better-late-than-never-keeping-usaid-funds-out-of-terrorist-hands |access-date=2019-10-03 |website=www.washingtoninstitute.org |language=en}}</ref> Until June 2006, USAID lacked important background identifier information on individuals such as date of birth and full names. According to a Government Accountability Office report, USAID lacked even a procedure to verify the accuracy of individual's names. In March 2006, the USAID mission to Tel Aviv eliminated a requirement to periodically reevaluate partners resulting in a lack of scrutiny for organizations later tied to terrorists. Finally, USAID did not vet recipients that received funds under $25,000 from 2001 to 2003 and under $100,000 post 2003 until 2006 when the threshold returned to $25,000.<ref name=":4" />
=== Civil Litigation and Appeal ===
Following the closure of the HLF offices, Shukri Baker and Ghassan Elashi lodged a civil case to unfreeze HLF assists and reverse the designation of the HLF as a Terrorist Organization.{{Citation needed|date=July 2025}} {{When|date=July 2025}}The case was held before Judge [[Gladys Kessler]], a [[Bill Clinton]] appointment. The Executive Order was based on an "administrative record" explaining the reasons behind the decision to designate the HLF as a terrorist organization. The report claimed that the HLF was a front for Hamas.
The report contained a number of documents including one that claimed Shukri Baker was a member of Hamas. None of the statements quoted were taken under oath. The key claim was a list of 70–80 orphans who had received support from the HLF and that they were children of Hamas fighters. Baker and Elashi's lawyers analysed the list and found that only three of the fathers were involved in armed resistance. They had been killed preparing a bomb. They also noted that the list contained children of 11 men killed by Hamas for collaborating with the Israeli secret services. Another document contained a statement from a former manager of the HLF Jerusalem office which the lawyers were able to prove was a fabrication.<ref>Peled. pp. 102, 103</ref>
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In 2003 the HLF's lawyers learnt that there was a criminal investigation underway. Their lawyer, John Boyd, later said they regretted filing the civil case since it led the Government to abandon the original charges which had been so effectively refuted and create a completely new case.<ref>Peled. pp. 102, 107</ref>
=== Cultural Discourse ===
On February 22, 2022, Nida Abu Baker, the daughter of Shukri Abu Baker
== Notes ==
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[[Category:Foreign charities operating in Palestine]]
[[Category:Organizations established in 1989]]
[[Category:Organizations disestablished in 2001]]
[[Category:Organizations designated as terrorist by Israel]]
[[Category:Organizations involved in the Israeli–Palestinian conflict]]
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[[Category:Controversies in Texas]]
[[Category:21st-century American trials]]
[[Category:1989 establishments in Texas]]
[[Category:2001 disestablishments in Texas]]
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