Fifth Circuit Affirms Convictions in Holy Land Foundation

Yesterday, a Fifth Circuit panel (King, joined by Garza and Graves) affirmed the convictions of the individual defendants in the Holy Land Foundation ("HLF") case and also dismissed the appeal lodged by the foundation itself.  Be warned; the document is 170 pages. The case arose out of allegations that HLF and the individual defendants were secretly engaged in fundraising for Hamas.  As summarized in the opinion, HLF raised millions of dollars for social services in the West Bank and Gaza, channeling the money through Hamas and thus doing much to "further[] its popularity among Palestinians and ... providing a funding resources.  This, in turn, allowed Hamas to concentrate its efforts on violent activity." (slip op. at 4).  After a mistrial, both the defendants and HLF itself were convicted of various charges including conspiring to provide and actually providing material support to Hamas.