Lawyers seeking Palestinian American businessman accused of aiding Hamas cannot find him

Lawyers who are suing Bashar Masri, a leading Palestinian American businessman accused of aiding Hamas, say they are unable to locate him.

Victims of the October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel sued Masri in April. The lawsuit argued that Hamas deceived Israel ahead of the invasion by feigning an interest in developing Gaza, and that Masri and his companies were “an integral part of that grand deception.”

Some of Masri’s development projects appeared to be legitimate, but were also used to build and hide Hamas tunnels, store rockets, host Hamas leaders, train Hamas operatives, and produce electricity for Hamas tunnels, the case said.

Masri served on the dean’s council at Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government and resigned after the lawsuit was filed.

Lawyers in the case, filed in the federal US District Court for the District of Columbia, say they are unable to locate Masri to serve him a legal summons.

They asked the court on Friday to allow “alternative means” to reach Masri, including by publishing the complaint and summons in the Israeli newspaper Yediot Ahronot. Masri gave the newspaper a statement about the lawsuit, indicating he is aware of the case and likely follows the outlet.

The lawyers say Masri is believed to be in Palestinian-controlled territory, but they are unable to find an address and their efforts to serve him in the US have been unsuccessful. Masri has a residence in Washington, DC.

Masri’s office has denied the allegations, saying he “unequivocally opposes violence of any kind.”