WASHINGTON, D.C. — Retired FBI agent Lara Burns testified before the US Senate Subcommittee on Federal Courts, Oversight, Agency Action, and Federal Rights on August 7, 2026. She asserted that a conspiracy to support Hamas established in 1993 remains active through modern organizations including the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), American Muslims for Palestine (AMP), and Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP).

Burns, who led the Holy Land Foundation investigation between 2001 and 2008, told senators she believes the conspiracy under which the foundation was prosecuted is still in existence today. She called on the FBI, the IRS, and the DOJ to instigate criminal investigations into these referenced organizations for violations of the Foreign Agent Registration Act (FARA), Section 2239B of Title 18 of the US Code, and tax evasion or fraud.

The testimony traced the origins of the alleged network to a meeting of leaders from the Palestine Committee in Philadelphia in 1993. Burns stated that the FBI lawfully wiretapped this meeting, where members defined the scope of a conspiracy that included supporting Hamas abroad and infiltrating universities, media, and politics in the US. Both founders of CAIR were captured on this 1993 wiretap, and CAIR co-founder Nihad Awad was an active participant who remains the executive director of the organization.

According to Burns, the intent of the conspiracy was "normalizing Hamas and Muslim Brotherhood extremist ideology in American society." She testified that the conspirators noted their intent to cleanse the curriculum in US-based schools because, quote, "We don’t want our children growing up surrendering to the idea of peace with Jews." The leaders knew Hamas would be designated a terror organization and agreed to continue their agenda by "cloaking themselves under the cover of legitimacy," she said.

Burns detailed the specific roles assigned to different entities within this network. She testified that the Texas-based Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development (HLF) served to send money to Gaza and the West Bank to support the Hamas social infrastructure before the group was designated as a terror front in 2001. In a 2008 federal trial, HLF and five of its officials were convicted of providing material support to Hamas.

CAIR’s role, Burns stated, was "to defend and protect the other elements of the Hamas support network and to pressure others to adopt its narratives or remain quiet." She noted that CAIR was named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the HLF prosecution and has never formally disavowed HLF. While CAIR has told Congress it has no ties to Hamas, Burns testified that the documented record says otherwise.

In her written testimony, she wrote that two calls in 1999 by CAIR founder Omar Ahmad demonstrated he "was directing expenditures of a Hamas fundraising organization." She stated that if she were still an active FBI agent today, CAIR would be on her list of organizations warranting further investigation. When asked by the Senate if groups mentioned during the HLF prosecution as likely providing material support to terrorists are still in existence today, Burns replied yes. She said she believes the groups mentioned are still actively members of the Muslim Brotherhood Network. She cited SJP and AMP as part of this network and testified to their role in "reframing the atrocities [of October 7] as legitimate resistance and/or, as acts of self-defense, consistent with senior Hamas leaders’ messaging." She stated that "CAIR and AMP have continued to co-sponsor and participate jointly in anti-Israel events wherein narratives are often twisted." Additionally, she stated that "CAIR has financially sponsored certain SJP members who violated campus codes of conduct, claiming the students were merely ‘targeted for their pro-Palestinian advocacy.’"

she told the Senate that elements within the network have evolved and rebranded and "CAIR’s pressure tactics are still in play." She stated: "CAIR and other elements of this network appear to have continued their acts in furtherance of the conspiratorial agenda as detailed extensively in my written testimony today." The conduct of these groups since October 7, 2023, further suggests that they have not withdrawn from the conspiracy, she said. Beyond calling for criminal investigations, Burns called for updated federal laws regarding the provision of material support to a foreign terrorist organization. She called for enhanced transparency in reporting for 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organizations on a federal level, with specific focus on requirements to identify foreign donors. Burns also called on K-12 schools to report foreign funding and ensure transparency.

Why It Matters

The testimony asserts that a conspiracy established in 1993 to support Hamas remains active through modern organizations, suggesting the network has evolved rather than dissolved since the Holy Land Foundation convictions. If accurate, this continuity implies that current campus activism and public discourse may stem from a long-term strategy to normalize extremist ideology and intimidate critics. The allegations challenge the operational status of several major groups and could prompt federal investigations into tax compliance and foreign agent registration.