Story perspectives

NJ Hopeful, Plastic-Surgeon Candidate Linked to Terror Charity

5/27/2026

Summary

Story summary

The New Jersey Democratic hopeful’s 1990s volunteer work for Benevolence International, later exposed as an Al-Qaida front, has resurfaced.
Plastic-surgeon congressional candidate Adam Hamawy volunteered in Bosnia for Benevolence International, which the U.S. Treasury later sanctioned for terrorist ties.
Federal evidence linked Benevolence International’s leadership to Al-Qaida founders, weapons-grade uranium procurement, and meetings with Osama bin Laden’s brother-in-law.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro warned that targeting AIPAC could silence Jewish voices.

History

Historical Context

The Benevolence International Foundation began in 1988 as an import-export firm founded by Mohammed Jamal Khalifa, Osama bin Laden’s brother-in-law, and was renamed and incorporated as a U.S. tax-exempt charity on March 30 1992 under Enaam Arnaout. By the mid-1990s the group, which had supplied mujahedeen during the Soviet-Afghan war, attracted U.S. investigations for alleged terrorist links, a legacy that now fuels political scrutiny of New Jersey candidates tied to its 1990s volunteer work.

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Story summary

The New Jersey Democratic hopeful’s 1990s volunteer work for Benevolence International, later exposed as an Al-Qaida front, has resurfaced.
Plastic-surgeon congressional candidate Adam Hamawy volunteered in Bosnia for Benevolence International, which the U.S. Treasury later sanctioned for terrorist ties.
Federal evidence linked Benevolence International’s leadership to Al-Qaida founders, weapons-grade uranium procurement, and meetings with Osama bin Laden’s brother-in-law.
Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro warned that targeting AIPAC could silence Jewish voices.

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