Issa, House Colleagues Press Biden Administration on Iranian Funding of Anti-Israel Organizations in U.S.

WASHINGTON – Congressman Darrell Issa (CA-48) joined Congressman Jim Banks (IN-03) and 20 House colleagues in sending a letter to Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Attorney General Merrick Garland, and Director of National Intelligence Avril Haines requesting answers on Iranian funding of anti-Israel protests in the United States, following testimony by Director Haines that Iran is funding anti-Israel protests in the U.S.

The letter, led by Congressman Banks, calls on the DOJ to prosecute individuals and entities in violation of anti-terrorism statutes by accepting financial aid from Iran, a state sponsor of terrorism.

“Director Haines’s testimony that Iran is funding antisemitic and anti-Israel protests across America demands a full investigation. For months, we’ve seen protests on college campuses and recently witnessed the American flag being burned and replaced with the Palestinian flag near the Capitol. The American people deserve to know Iran's influence in these protests and the extent of the alliance between the Progressive Left and the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism. I join Congressman Banks in urging the Administration to take action and provide Congress and the public with the answers we deserve.

“I doubt we’ll get the truth or any meaningful course correction from the Biden-Harris Administration — including its failure to enforce sanctions that enriched Iran and powered China, refusing to come clean about potential espionage related to Antony Blinken’s close friend Rob Malley, to the failure to react to reports of Iranian involvement in the attempted assassination of President Trump,” said Rep. Issa.

An excerpt of the questions from the letter:

1. Which specific individuals and entities have received financial assistance, directly or indirectly, from the Government of Iran or any entities that are agents or affiliates of the Iranian regime?
2. Have any of these groups been notified of the Iranian origin of their funding? 
   1. If so, which organizations have been notified?
   2. What due diligence measures do the individuals or entities that have received this funding have in place to guard against such illicit actors?
   3. Have any such organizations volunteered to give up this funding or made any indication that they would reject such funding in the future?
3. What is the estimated total amount of financial support provided by Iran to these groups, and how long has this financial support been occurring?
4. Does ODNI or the FBI have evidence to suggest that any of these anti-Israel groups knew or should have known that they were receiving support from an SSOT or FTO? 
   1. Has the Treasury Department notified any financial institutions that their institutions were used to process illicit payments?
   2. Were any transactions identified and blocked by Treasury?

The letter was highlighted in an exclusive piece by the Washington Free Beacon.

The full letter letter can be found here.