Court Upholds Convictions of Muslim Nonprofit Leaders Accused of Aiding Terrorists

A federal appeals court on Wednesday affirmed the 2008 convictions of five leaders of an Islamic charity accused of funneling money to Hamas, reports Reuters.

The U.S. Court of Appeals said organizers of the Texas-based Holy Land Foundation were convicted fairly of money laundering, tax fraud, and conspiracy in November 2008 based on “voluminous evidence” of long-running financial ties to Hamas. The Palestinian organization has been designated a terrorist group by the federal government.

Holy Land, which was closed by the George W. Bush administration after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, maintained its funds went to West Bank and Gaza charities that served legitimate social purposes.

In appealing their convictions, the defendants argued that they did not receive a fair trial three years ago, citing among other issues the government’s use of secret Israeli witnesses to testify against them.