Republicans Critical of Biden Strategy to Confront Iranian-Funded Terrorism

WASHINGTON — A congressional panel on Wednesday examined whether the Biden administration should do more to stop the flow of money Iran secretly uses to support terrorists.

Top of the list was the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas against unsuspecting Israeli civilians. About 1,200 of them were killed and more than 240 kidnapped.

An equal concern as lawmakers questioned Biden administration officials was the possible next targets of terrorists funded by Iran.

“As we speak, Iranian proxies continue to attack American troops and their allies,” said Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich.

U.S. sanctions against Iran have become a higher priority for Congress in the past few weeks, first because of the Oct. 7 attack against Israel and second because of a bill the House approved last month to freeze $6 billion in Iranian funds.

In addition to preventing terrorism, the sanctions are intended to stop the Iranians from developing nuclear weapons, acquiring arms through foreign purchases and extending their political influence in the Middle East.

The $6 billion held in Qatar accounts is Iranian oil money but prohibited from being returned to the Iranian government by international agreement among the United States and its allies.

In August, the Biden administration told the Iranians they could have the money in exchange for release of five Americans being held in Iran’s prisons.

The Iranians said they were spies and subversives. The U.S. government said they were innocent Americans.

One provision of the deal said Iran could use the $6 billion only for humanitarian purposes, such as food and medicine.

Republicans who supported the bill for a permanent freeze on returning the money sharply criticized the deal during the House Financial Services subcommittee hearing Wednesday.

They said it was naive to believe the Iranians would abide by the agreement to spend the money only on food and medicine. More likely, they claimed, was that it would be used to fund further acts of terrorism.

So far, the $6 billion has not been returned to Iran. President Joe Biden, the government of Qatar and allies said it should be held up amid growing evidence Iran funded Hamas.

“Iran continues to be a leading state sponsor of terrorism,” said Huizenga, who chairs the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee.

He accused Biden of encouraging the Iranians’ tendency toward radical violence. He mentioned a recent 120-day waiver Biden gave Iraq to make payments for electricity to Iran as an example.

“In order to prevent further atrocities, we need to increase, not relax, sanctions on the Iranian regime,” Huizenga said.

The two witnesses at the hearing — both of them Biden administration officials — agreed the Iranians were backing terrorism with financing but disagreed the president should be blamed.

“All of us here share a common interest, preventing acts of terror,” said Elizabeth Rosenberg, a U.S. assistant secretary for terrorist financing and financial crimes.

Terrorists derive their funding from a variety of sources, which means sanctions might not be the answer to disrupting them, she said.

Hamas, for example, gets money from taxes in Gaza and its own investment portfolio as well as the Iranian regime, she said. In addition, the Iranians have been increasing their revenue that could fund terrorism through more oil exports.

Abram Paley, U.S. deputy special envoy to Iran, called Iran “one of the most persistent threats we face as a country.”

He added, “We are pushing back against its destabilizing tendencies.

“We have not lifted any sanctions against Iran,” he said.

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