A doctoral student and researcher at Yale Law School in New Haven, Conn., has been linked to a U.S.-sanctioned terrorist fundraising entity, The Washington Free Beacon reported, and subsequently placed on administrative leave.
Postings obtained by the news outlet found that Helyeh Doutaghi, deputy director of the Law and Political Economy Project and an associate research scholar, is a member of the Samidoun Palestinian Prisoner Solidarity Network.
Samidoun was sanctioned and listed as a terrorist entity in a joint effort by the United States and Canada in October of 2024 for being “a sham charity that serves as an international fundraiser for the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine terrorist organization.”
“Organizations like Samidoun masquerade as charitable actors that claim to provide humanitarian support to those in need, yet in reality divert funds for much-needed assistance to support terrorist groups,” said acting under secretary of the treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence Bradley Smith.
Doutaghi was put on administrative leave, according to Alden Ferro, a spokesman for the university, per the Beacon.
“We take these allegations extremely seriously and immediately opened an investigation into the matter to ascertain the facts,” stated Ferro. “Helyeh Doutaghi’s short-term position as an associate research scholar with the LPE Project expires next month. Until then, she has been placed on an immediate administrative leave pending the outcome of this investigation.”
Doutaghi was scheduled to speak as part of a panel with Samidoun leader Khaled Barakat, also associated with the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, listed as a foreign terrorist organization by the United States in 1997.
Barakat was sanctioned by Washington in October.
