IPT: HLF Trial Closing Arguments
The retrial of the Hamas-linked Islamic charity known as the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development is in its final phase: Purpose of HLF’s Charity Debated in Closing Arguments.
DALLAS – They sang praises to a terrorist group, had telephone access to its leadership and deceived the public about their true ambitions, a federal prosecutor said Monday about the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF).
Five former HLF officials are on trial for illegally routing millions of dollars in donations to Hamas through a series of Palestinian charities, known as zakat committees, that prosecutors say are controlled by the terrorist group.
In his closing argument, federal prosecutor Barry Jonas pointed to what he called the “highlights of the highlights” of the government’s six-week case. It includes hundreds of exhibits, ranging from wiretapped telephone calls to audio and video conferences to stacks of bank records.
But the case likely hinges on whether jurors agree the zakat committees were controlled by Hamas. Jonas pointed to instances in which some committee officials were identified as Hamas members in media interviews and by other Hamas officials. Telephone records in evidence tied in other committee officials. And a former HLF fundraiser testifying for the government said that the zakat committees were a part of Hamas.
It’s an assessment shared by the Palestinian Authority, Jonas noted.
The Hamas charter calls for the destruction of the state of Israel, to be replaced by a Palestinian state governed by Shariah, or Islamic law, Jonas said. It also calls for providing charity “to everyone who is in need of it.”
Bruce Hoffman, a Georgetown University professor and terrorism expert, testified that a social wing has proven critical for successful terrorist movements throughout history.
Hamas has three branches, Jonas said, a military arm that carries out terrorist attacks, a social arm that wins hearts and minds of the population through charitable work, and a political arm that controls the money and sets policy.
Much of Jonas’ argument was spent reviewing audio and video tapes in evidence. Rallies in which Hamas leaders appear or were praised were shown. A skit featuring defendant Mufid Abdelqader, who performed in a band at many of these functions, ended with him pretending to strangle an actor portraying an Israeli civilian.
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