Washington intends to increase pressure on Hamas' financial channels as part of its broader campaign to support Israel in its fight against the Palestinian movement, according to the report.
Haniyeh and other Hamas leaders have been accused by US officials of living "in luxury," while the Israeli Foreign Ministry has said his net worth amounts to billions of dollars, but neither has provided evidence to back up the claims, the newspaper reported.
Experts, such as former US Treasury Department official Matthew Levitt, stated that Hamas collects around $400 million worth of taxes per year. Daniel Roth, research director at the United Against Nuclear Iran non-governmental organization, said that the Gaza leadership earns around $450 million per year through operations on the black market. Hamas spends about $1.6 billion per year to govern the Gaza Strip, the researcher added.
The Palestinian movement is also said to have an investment portfolio of up to $1 billion in the Middle East, Turkiye and some other countries, the news outlet reported, citing US officials. Hamas also receives as much as $120 million from Iran, according to the US Department of State.
Last week, US Deputy Secretary of the Treasury Wally Adeyemo stressed that the US remained "laser-focused" on undermining Hamas' financial flows, as they are used to attack Israel.
On October 7, Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise large-scale rocket attack against Israel from the Gaza Strip and breached the border, killing and abducting people in neighboring Israeli communities. Israel launched retaliatory strikes and ordered a complete blockade of the Gaza Strip, home to more than 2 million people, cutting off supplies of water, food, and fuel. On October 27, Israel launched a large scale ground incursion inside the Gaza Strip to eliminate Hamas fighters and rescue the hostages. The escalation of the conflict has resulted in the deaths of around 1,400 people in Israel and over 9,000 in the Gaza Strip.