The press release issued by the Charity Commission on 7 August 2026.
The Charity Commission has opened a statutory inquiry into Al-Khair Foundation and has restricted certain transactions.
The charity was set up to advance religion, promote education, support social welfare, build religious harmony and offer relief to victims of disasters. It operates in the UK and internationally.
Last month the Commission received a complaint alleging the charity and its partners had connections to Hamas, a proscribed terrorist organisation. It also alleged the charity had funded the organisation. The regulator immediately started examining the serious concerns raised and gathered more information to inform its assessment. The Commission has now escalated its engagement to a statutory inquiry.
The Commission is aware that Mohammad Yousef Hasna, an individual employed by an organisation that the Al-Khair Foundation works with to deliver aid in Gaza, has been arrested in the UK and charged by US authorities for conspiring to provide material support to Hamas. The regulator will be considering all relevant information as part of its investigation, which will include verifying his connection to the charity, and wider allegations made about the charity.
The charity recorded an income of over £74 million pounds in financial year ending 31 July 2025. Due to the concerns of possible serious risk to charitable funds, the Commission has issued a legal order restricting certain financial transactions by the charity without the Commission’s prior consent.
Scope of the inquiry
The inquiry will examine the extent to which the trustees are complying or have complied with their legal duties in respect of the administration, governance and management of the charity. The investigation will seek to establish:
- the nature and extent of the charity’s links to Mr Hasna
- whether trustees have carried out appropriate checks and due diligence on international partners
- whether trustees are effectively monitoring the end use of funds internationally and have appropriate policies and procedures in place to protect funds from risk of misuse
- whether any failings or weaknesses identified in the administration of the Charity are a result of misconduct and/or mismanagement by the trustees
The scope of the inquiry can be extended if additional regulatory issues emerge.
As charity regulator, the Commission cannot investigate criminal matters. In line with the regulator’s policy, if evidence of criminal activity is found, this will be referred to the police which has the power to investigate.
It is the Commission’s policy, after it has concluded an inquiry, to publish a report detailing the issues examined, any action taken, and the inquiry’s outcomes.