Two Louisiana brothers are facing terrorism charges for their alleged role in a twisted scheme to fund Hamas under the guise of Gaza humanitarian aid – and they were brought down with the help of the NYPD.

Abdel Adhami and his sibling Omar Adhami were busted in the Pelican State last month for allegedly raising money online and funneling it to Saleem Alzaq, a member of the terror group who regularly uses social media to post Hamas propaganda, according to newly unsealed federal indictments.

Abdel allegedly funneled more than $83,000 to Hamas from 2023 to 2026 while his brother is accused of sending $6,000.

According to a complaint, Abdel Adhami used several different Snapchat accounts to post Hamas propaganda and raise funds for the terrorist group, in addition to referring followers to a Telegram account. Eastern District of Louisiana

Abdel, one of two U.S. brothers accused in a $1.7 million Hamas fundraising scheme, allegedly used several different Snapchat accounts to post Hamas propaganda and raise funds for the group, in addition to referring followers to a Telegram account. Eastern District of Louisiana

According to Abdel’s complaint, he used several different Snapchat accounts to post Hamas propaganda and raise funds for the terrorist group, in addition to referring followers to a Telegram account. 

The Telegram account “almost exclusively posted pro-HAMAS and pro-Palestinian Islamic Jihad messages, videos, and images, while soliciting donations,” the court docs said.

Adbel is accused of sending almost $35,000 to one PayPal account and $46,000 to another between November 2023 and June 2025 — all of which was funneled to Alzaq, the complaint said.

The brothers allegedly used code words to avoid detection including the term “bread” when referring to Hamas fighters and funding. 

“This is the message I wanted to deliver to the person who donated the bread,” Alzaq said to Adbel via Snapchat in January 2024, the court documents say.

Abdel and Omar Adhami were busted for allegedly raising money online and funneling it to Saleem Alzaq, a member of the terror group who regularly uses social media to post Hamas propaganda, according to federal indictments. Eastern District of Louisiana

“Some of them received the bread, thanks be to god,” Alzaq allegedly continued. 

The fundraising plot started to unravel after Alzaq inadvertently contacted an undercover NYPD detective who went by “Hussain” in November 2025 via SnapChat.

Adbel is accused of sending almost $35,000 to one PayPal account and $46,000 to another between November 2023 and June 2025 — all of which was funneled to Alzaq, the complaint said. Eastern District of Louisiana

The next month, Alzaq directed the cop to reach out to Abdel.

“Call him and come to an understanding with him and see what’s the best method, how to transfer, how to send them [funds]. This young man transfers to me on a monthly basis,” the complaint states.

It’s unclear if the undercover detective actually transferred any money to Abdel.

The fundraising plot started to unravel after Alzaq inadvertently contacted an undercover NYPD detective who went by “Hussain” in November 2025 via SnapChat. Eastern District of Louisiana

“But do not worry everything is legal, God willing,” Abdel wrote to the cop on WhatsApp, according to his complaint. 

Abdel and his brother both face charges of providing material support to a foreign terrorist organization and wire fraud.

Alzaq was charged with conspiracy to provide material support to a foreign terrorist organization, conspiracy to violate the international emergency economic powers act, conspiracy to commit money laundering and conspiracy to defraud the United States.

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“The NYPD’s counterterrorism work knows no borders,” NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch said in a statement about the arrests.

“Our intelligence analysts uncovered this international finance network and built the case that exposed more than $2 million being funneled to Hamas,” the commissioner said.

“This is the kind of extraordinary counterterrorism work the NYPD does every day to disrupt threats before they reach New Yorkers, and I thank our law enforcement partners for helping us dismantle this network,” she added.