A charity with links to Iran appears to have raised money for the relatives of “martyrs” killed during the “Battle of Al-Aqsa storm" — Hamas’ term for the October 7 massacre.
The Al-Mueen Foundation, which was incorporated in 2024, made the apparent plea for funds on its Telegram account, which it is using to support Gaza.
The charity’s director, Yaser Al-Sayegh, is a Bahraini who was deported from the Arab state in 1997, but has since acquired British citizenship.
Mr Al-Sayegh appears to have solicited support and donations for the Al-Mueen Foundation on the social media platform.
In June 2024, Mr Al-Sayegh’s account posted in a Telegram group called "Wilayat al-Faqih Group", which refers to the Shia political doctrine developed by Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the first supreme leader of the Iranian revolution.
The post detailed how a “generous donation” from the foundation saw “cash assistance was distributed to the wounded who were besieged in Al-Shifa Medical Hospital for 15 days after the Israeli occupation forces stormed and destroyed the hospital".
The post added “cash assistance” was also “distributed to the orphans of the martyrs during the Battle of the Al-Aqsa Storm", which is Hamas’ term for its unprovoked terrorist attack on October 7, 2023.
The attack killed at least 1,219 people and led to the taking of 251 hostages. Most of the victims were Israeli civilians.
The Al-Mueen Foundation, which was incorporated in 2024, has yet to register with the Charity Commission
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While Mr Al-Sayegh has not formally replied to requests for comment, his position is understood to be the charity’s Telegram account has been hacked by an individual in Gaza.
The Al-Mueen Foundation Telegram account has twice advertised a fundraising venture with students from the Amir Al-Mumenin Complex in the Iranian city of Qom.
The school is under the umbrella of Al-Mustafa International University, which has been sanctioned by the United States since December 2020 under a counterterrorism executive order.
The US Treasury accused the university of enabling the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps' Quds Force’s “intelligence operations by allowing its student body, which includes large numbers of foreign and American students, to serve as an international recruitment network".
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The charity appears to have raised money for the relatives of 'martyrs' killed during the 'Battle of Al-Aqsa storm'
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The US also said that students from the university had been sent to Syria to fight on behalf of militia led by the IRGC's Qods Force.
These revelations have led to calls for further investigation.
Lord Walney, the government’s former independent adviser on political violence, told the People's Channel: “These alarming allegations must be immediately and urgently investigated. There should be no place in British public life for any individual or group that supports the activities of the Iranian regime or gives the title 'martyrs' to the brutal antisemitic Hamas fighters who butchered thousands of Israeli civilians on 7 October 2023.”
He added: “In fact, we should have the powers to strip British citizenship from any foreign-born national who espouses those views and send them packing.”
The GB News investigation has also uncovered that in February 2025, controversial cleric Sheikh Hasan Al-Taraiki was seen raising donations for the foundation.
Mr Al-Taraiki is an imam at the Abrar Islamic Foundation in west London, which is currently undergoing a regulatory compliance case with the Charity Commission relating to allegations of links to extremism and terrorism. These revelations have led to calls for further investigation.
He attended a conference with Hamas and Hezbollah figures in Beirut in 2024, where he gave a speech called “the myth of human rights and the logic of force".
The event featured US-sanctioned leaders, The Times newspaper reported in 2025.
When approached for comment, Mr Taraiki alleged the newspaper was “fed stories by pro-Israel propagandists who misrepresent those who support resistance against the Israeli genocide” and said the claims “include mistranslations, a lack of context and, more importantly, flat-out lies”. However, he did not deny attending the conference.
Mr al-Sayegh's charity is currently not registered with the Charity Commission.
The Commission is in the process of assessing whether Mr Al-Sayegh's Foundation ought to be registered and regulated.
The fact it is not registered does not suggest any wrongdoing on his part.
Mr Al-Sayegh was contacted for comment.
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