A senior aid worker at one of Britain’s largest Muslim charities is facing possible extradition to the United States over allegations that he channelled millions of pounds in aid to Hamas following the October 7 massacre.
Mohammed Hasna is accused of exploiting his position at the Al Khair Foundation (AKF) to send money and supplies to the terror group after its 2023 attack on Israel.
The 45-year-old was detained after an FBI investigation allegedly uncovered intercepted communications between him and a senior Hamas figure, along with a document said to list payments to the terrorist organisation totalling nearly £4 million.
His arrest has brought renewed scrutiny to the Al Khair Foundation, a Croydon-based charity in south London that operates four UK schools attended by more than 400 pupils. Established in 2003 by Imam Qasim Rashid Ahmad, AKF also delivers humanitarian assistance across the Muslim world and runs its own television channel.
US court documents obtained by The Mail on Sunday do not name the organisation directly, but describe a body with details closely resembling AKF as a “sham charity”.
The case prompted a significant intervention this weekend from the Charity Commission, which confirmed it had opened an investigation into AKF and imposed a legal order limiting the charity’s financial transactions.
Hasna, who is based in an office in Turkey, says he has served as AKF’s global director since January 2023 after previously spending eight years as its regional director. In an online profile, he describes himself as a “dreamer” who is “trying to find his way to the heart of the people”.
However, according to the legal filings, an unnamed FBI agent alleges that Hasna has been a “longtime supporter of Hamas” and used his role at the alleged “sham charity” to “raise funds and provide financing and commodities to Hamas”.
Mohammed Hasna allegedly used his role at the Al Khair Foundation to send funds and supplies to the terror group after its barbaric attack on Israel in 2023
The 45-year-old was arrested after an FBI probe exposed alleged intercepted messages between Hasna and a senior Hamas leader
The documents allege Hasna arranged cash deliveries to Ghazi Hamad, a top Hamas leader who last year survived an Israeli missile strike in Qatar.
In an intercepted voice message in August 2024, Hasna informed Hamad – who was designated as a terrorist by the US in November 2024 – that he had arranged a delivery of around £2,200 to him via an intermediary.
Hasna and Hamad also exchanged messages that included a so-called ‘ledger’ which detailed almost £4million of ‘incoming’ funds and £2.3million of ‘expenses’ in the year to July 2025. The FBI concluded that more than £500,000 of the ‘incoming’ money was ‘personally received’ by Hamad.
Messages sent in an encrypted app also allegedly reveal how Hasna and Hamad discussed the transport, storage and distribution of supplies to Hamas.
In July 2024, Hamad asked Hasna to provide video footage of aid parcels without showing signs or markings inside the storage facility. According to the FBI, the objective was to prevent viewers and donors from understanding that the true recipient of the parcels was Hamas.
Six days later, the FBI claims Hasna discussed diverting 5,000 food parcels to Hamad, while the FBI said other messages in October showed the pair’s efforts to bring goods into Gaza for Hamas ‘while concealing the true distribution network of the goods’.
In other messages in November 2024, Hasna asked Hamad for help setting up a conference in Turkey.
‘I know that you have contact with the United Nations, the Red Cross, and details like that,’ Hasna wrote. ‘Is it possible to share their numbers with me?’
This is understood to refer to a ‘future of Gaza’ summit hosted by AKF and another foundation in 2024.
US prosecutors have charged Hasna, who was arrested in the UK on July 31, with conspiring to provide material support to Hamas, conspiring to finance terrorism, and financing terrorism, each of which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years in jail.
Hasna has been accused of working with Hamas official Ghazi Hamad (pictured)
The Charity Commission said it is probing the nature of AKF’s links to Mr Hasna (pictured)
FBI New York Assistant Director James C Barnacle, Jr said: ‘Mohammad Hasna allegedly used a charity to funnel millions of dollars in aid to Hamas – a designated terrorist organization responsible for countless terrorist attacks, death, and destruction around the world.’
The scale of AKF’s rapid financial growth after the October 7 massacres appears to be a key part of the FBI’s case.
The US legal documents claim the ‘sham charity’s’ gross income almost doubled from about $41.8million in 2023 to $81.56million in 2024. For the year ending July 31, 2025, it reported gross income of about $100million.
These figures mirror AKF’s accounts, which show income of £31million in 2023, £62million in 2024 and £75million last year.
The MoS understands that Shin Bet, one of Israel’s spy agencies, helped the FBI agents with their investigation into Hasna.
The Charity Commission said it is probing the nature of AKF’s links to Mr Hasna.
In a statement, Al Khair said it was cooperating with the Charity Commission’s inquiry, ‘with a view to answering questions posed, addressing concerns raised, and taking remedial action if needed’.
It added: ‘We are a proudly British humanitarian organisation, a registered charity with a distinguished record spanning more than two decades of delivering humanitarian assistance and alleviating poverty.
It said Mr Hasna ‘is employed by one of our implementing partners’. But the MoS this weekend uncovered evidence of Hasna representing Al Khair at the signing of an agreement with another foundation just three months ago.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: ‘There should be no place in British public life for any individual or group that fundraises for a designated terrorist organisation.
‘Mohammad Hasna must be extradited as soon as possible so that he can face the full force of the law in the US.
‘The Charity Commission and the police should also get to the bottom of how this money ended up in the hands of vile terrorists and shut this organisation down.’
