US citizens sue state sponsors of terrorism, Iran, Syria and North Korea, for aiding Hamas mass murder

JERUSALEM – A group of Americans filed a lawsuit on Monday in federal court in the District of Columbia, alleging Iran, Syria and North Korea provided material support to Hamas to commit atrocities during its mass murder of nearly 1,200 people in southern Israel on Oct. 7.

The lawsuit was launched on behalf of U.S. citizens who were injured or killed during Hamas’ invasion. The terrorist group murdered over 30 Americans during the terrorist attack.

The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and the law firm Crowell & Moring LLP said in their joint lawsuit that Iran’s regime, Syria and North Korea provided material support to Hamas to commit atrocities in Israel on Oct. 7.

"Iran is the world’s leading state sponsor of antisemitism and terror – along with Syria and North Korea, they must be held responsible for their roles in the largest antisemitic attack since the Holocaust. We are doing everything possible to hold Hamas terrorists and those who support them accountable, including putting all of ADL’s weight behind this effort," said Jonathan A. Greenblatt, ADL CEO and national director. 

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This image made from undated bodycam video footage taken by a downed Hamas terrorist and released by Israel Defense Forces shows a Hamas terrorist walking around a residential neighborhood at an undisclosed location in southern Israel. (Israel Defense Forces via AP)

He added, "In a world in which Jewish pain and suffering is far too often erased, we hope this ground-breaking case will bring justice to some victims and create a record of Hamas’ heinous brutality perpetrated with the support of these state sponsors of terrorism."

Fox News Digital reported on Oct. 7 that Iranian regime-backed proxies were behind the invasion of Israel. On Oct. 15, Fox News Digital revealed that the Iran regime's organized plan to aid Hamas was front-and-center in the thinking of the dictator who rules over Iran, Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.

Iran, Syria and North Korea aided Hamas with military, tactical and financial support, noted the lawsuit. The U.S. classifies Hamas as a foreign terrorist organization.

Syria, Iran and North Korea are being sued for aiding Hamas' Oct 7 massacre in Israel. (Vahid Salemi/AP Newsroom | Barry Iverson/Getty Images | Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images | Majdi Fathi/NurPhoto via Getty Images.)

The lawsuit aims to hold the state sponsors of terrorism accountable under the Terrorism Exception to the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act. 

The ADL said in a statement, "Foreign countries that sponsor terrorist activities typically refuse to honor judgments against them. The victims will then need the support of the U.S. Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund – a fund Congress created in 2015 to allow American victims of terrorism such as those in this case to obtain some meaningful relief for their suffering."

The main Hamas terrorist mastermind behind the attack, Yahya Sinwar, is hiding in Rafah in the Gaza Strip, according to reports.

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Then-Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi meets Syrian leader Bashar Al-Assad in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Nov. 11, 2023. (Iranian Presidency/Handout/Anadolu via Getty Images)

James Pasch, ADL senior director of national litigation and ADL’s lead counsel on the case, said, "There is more than ample precedent for this case: U.S. courts have repeatedly held Iran, Syria and North Korea responsible for material support of terrorist attacks that harmed U.S. and dual U.S.-Israeli citizens."

He added, "There is also clear evidence that these state sponsors of terrorism provided material support to Hamas terrorists for the atrocities on Oct. 7. In a world in which Oct. 7 denialism took hold almost immediately after the attack, this case will set the record straight about the horrors of what occurred on that day, who was responsible for providing material support for this heinous terrorist attack, and will ultimately provide a path for justice, accountability and redress." 

The U.S. State Department currently lists four state sponsors of international terrorism: The Islamic Republic of Iran, the communist North Korean state, Syria and the communist state of Cuba.

A bloodied handprint stains a wall in a Nir Oz house after Hamas terrorists attacked this kibbutz days earlier near the border of Gaza. (Alexi J. Rosenfeld/Getty Images)

The ADL noted, "Each of the more than 100 plaintiffs in this suit is a U.S. citizen, or the family member of a U.S. citizen, and is therefore eligible to bring suit for the deaths, physical and emotional injuries, and hostage-takings Hamas caused during its barbaric rampage. "

The legal actions cover Hamas’ massacres at various locations in southern Israel, including the Nova Music Festival, Kibbutz Kfar Aza, Kibbutz Be'eri, Kibbutz Sa'ad, Kibbutz Kissufim, Kibbutz Erez, and Sufa Base. 

"My mom, Adrienne Neta, was born and raised in California. Her father was an Air Force engineer, and the family lived on Navy bases for most of her childhood. In the early '80s, she made aliya and married my dad, and together, they built a family in Kibbutz Be'eri," said plaintiff Nahar Neta. 

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An image released by the IDF on Dec. 15, showing fighting unfolding in Gaza against Hamas terrorists. (IDF)

"While nothing will ever undo the unbearable pain Hamas caused our family or recover the brutal losses we’ve suffered, we hope this case will bring some sense of justice. It’s important for us to be able to tell our stories so the world can hear how Hamas has terrorized Israel, the Jewish people, and many American citizens. My mom devoted her life to caring for others, regardless of race or religious beliefs. She was a peace and justice seeker who was active in many civilian efforts to bridge the gap between Jews and Arabs in Israel."

FOX Business reported last week that American victims of the Oct. 7 massacre sued the scandal-plagued U.N. agency UNRWA for allegedly providing material assistance to Hamas terrorists.