Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed is facing renewed scrutiny over his familys long-standing ties to an Islamic charity that has repeatedly drawn the attention of federal investigators for alleged links to Saddam Husseins regime and other extremist networks.
According to the New York Post, Imam Dr. Mohammed El-Sayed, the candidates father, currently serves on the board of Life for Relief and Development (LRD), a Michigan-based charity he has been involved with since at least 2020, based on tax filings. The senior El-Sayeds relationship with the organization, which has a documented history of financial entanglements with hostile foreign actors, raises fresh questions as his son seeks a Senate seat in a closely watched battleground state.
In 2004, US military personnel and FBI agents raided LRDs Baghdad offices, seizing 20 boxes and 12 computers amid suspicions the group was aiding insurgents, the San Francisco Chronicle reported at the time. Federal authorities later accused the charity of orchestrating a scheme to route money from the United States through Jordan and into Saddam Husseins Iraq, in defiance of US sanctions.
The charitys public relations coordinator, Muthanna al-Hanooti, was subsequently charged with acting as an unregistered agent for Husseins government and pleaded guilty to violating the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. Government documents asserted that LRDs highest management levelsi.e., its Presidentknew of the conduct giving rise to the apparent violations and directed the funds transfers to Iraq via Jordan, underscoring the seriousness of the alleged misconduct.
LRD ultimately agreed to a $780,000 settlement with the federal government, which dropped its case against the organization in 2014. The Washington Free Beacon first highlighted Mohammed El-Sayeds current role with the charity that once funneled money into Husseins regime, a revelation that is likely to concern voters wary of national security risks.
The groups record extends beyond Iraq-related allegations, with LRD also accused of other terrorism-linked activities. In 2006, the FBI raided the charitys Michigan offices, and in 2007 its then-CEO was indicted by a grand jury on money-laundering and sanctions-violation charges.
Federal agents confiscated correspondence, notes, e-mails, facsimiles and other documents and records tied to the Islamic African Relief Agency, which was later shut down after being exposed for supporting al Qaeda. El-Sayeds birth mother, Fatten Fathy Elkomy, briefly worked for that same Islamic African Relief Agency, further intertwining the candidates family with organizations flagged by US authorities.
Life for Relief and Development also sent funds to an entity the FBI later identified as Hamas Jordanian operation, as previously reported by The Post. El-Sayeds father-in-law, Jukaku Tayeb, likewise served on LRDs board, deepening the network of familial connections to the controversial charity.
The Post has contacted El-Sayeds campaign and Life for Relief and Development for comment, but no response has yet been reported. Despite the mounting questions, El-Sayed currently holds a 3.2 percentage point lead over Republican Mike Rogers, according to the latest RealClearPolitics polling average, a margin that could narrow as voters learn more about the candidates family ties to organizations once linked to Americas enemies.
Login