Foreign relations of Hamas
, which as of 2023 had been the governing authority of the Gaza Strip, has foreign relations that spans various countries around the world. As of 2023, Mousa Abu Marzook is the group's head of international relations office.
Africa
Egypt
Egypt under Mohamed Morsi who was in power from 2011 to 2013, supported Hamas.South Africa
Hamas sent an official delegation to South Africa for the 10th anniversary of the death of Nelson Mandela, joining African National Congress minister Lindiwe Zulu at a wreath-laying event on 5 December 2023.Sudan
Sudan under President Omar al-Bashir was a major supporter and provided Hamas its rockets.Americas
Venezuela
The relations between Venezuela and Hamas have become closer under the presidencies of Hugo Chávez and Nicolás Maduro.United States
In early 2025, the US' Special Envoy for Hostage Affairs, Adam Boehler, talked directly with Hamas in an attempt to secure the release of American hostages. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters that the talks were a "one-off situation in which our special envoy for hostages, whose job it is to get people released, had an opportunity to talk directly to someone who has control over these people and was given permission and encouraged to do so. He did so."Asia
China
After Hamas' victory in the 2006 Palestinian legislative elections, China called the group the elected representatives of the Palestinian people. The PRC invited the Hamas Foreign Minister Mahmoud al-Zahar to attend the China-Arab Cooperation Forum in June 2006 ignoring protests by both the United States and Israel but received praise from Mahmoud Abbas.On 19 March 2024, Chinese Foreign Ministry ambassador Wang Kejian met with Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh in Qatar, where they "exchanged views on the Gaza conflict and other issues". Following talks mediated by China, on 23 July 2024, Palestinian factions including Hamas and Fatah reached an agreement to end their divisions and form an interim unity government, which they announced in the Beijing Declaration.
Lebanon
Iran
Israel
Islamists appeared to be more interested in studying the Quran than fighting Israel when Israel first came into contact with them in Gaza in the 1970s and 1980s. Mujama al-Islamiya, a forerunner of Hamas, was recognized by the Israeli authorities and registered as a charity. Members of the Mujama were able to establish an Islamic university as well as mosques, clubs, and schools. Importantly, Israel frequently took a back seat to the Islamists' sometimes deadly power struggles with their secular, left-wing Palestinian counterparts in Gaza and the West Bank. David Hacham, an Israeli military Arab relations specialist who operated in Gaza in the late 1980s and early 1990s, says, "When I look back at the chain of events, I think we made a mistake." However, none at the time considered the outcomes that might occur." On the extent to which their own actions may have helped to Hamas's rise, Israeli officials who served in Gaza disagree. They attribute the recent growth of the group to outside forces, mainly Iran. The Israeli government holds the same opinion.Malaysia
Qatar
Saudi Arabia
Syria
The Syrian Arab Republic was a staunch supporter of Hamas until 2011 with the outbreak of the Syrian civil war. In January 2012, Hamas sided with the Syrian rebels against the government Bashar al-Assad. Since 2022, relations have been restored and the support was renewed. Since 2022, Hamas is again part of the regional Axis of Resistance. In December 2024, the Assad regime collapsed following an offensive by the Syrian opposition. In April 2025, it was reported that Syria's transitional president Ahmed al-Sharaa freed Hamas and Islamic Jihad members who were detained under Assad.Turkey
Europe
Russia
Legal issues
Terrorist designation
Lawsuits
United States
The charitable trust Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development was accused in December 2001 of funding Hamas. The US Justice Department filed 200 charges against the foundation. The case first ended in a mistrial, in which jurors acquitted on some counts and were deadlocked on charges ranging from tax violations to providing material support for terrorists. In a retrial, on November 24, 2008, the five leaders of the Foundation were convicted on 108 counts.Several US organizations were either shut down or held liable for financing Hamas in early 2001, groups that have origins from the mid-1990s, among them the Holy Land Foundation, Islamic Association for Palestine, and Kind Hearts. The US Treasury Department specially designated the HLF in 2001 for terror ties because they claimed that from 1995 to 2001 the HLF transferred "approximately $12.4 million outside of the United States with the intent to contribute funds, goods, and services to Hamas." According to the Treasury Department, Khaled Mashal identified one of HLF's officers, Mohammed El-Mezain as "the Hamas leader for the US". In 2003, IAP was found liable for financially supporting Hamas, and in 2006, Kind Hearts had their assets frozen for supporting Hamas.
In 2004, a federal court in the United States found Hamas liable in a civil lawsuit for the 1996 murders of Yaron and Efrat Ungar near Bet Shemesh, Israel. Hamas was ordered to pay the families of the Ungars $116 million. The Palestinian Authority settled the lawsuit in 2011. The settlement terms were not disclosed. On August 20, 2004, three Palestinians, one a naturalized American citizen, were charged with a "lengthy racketeering conspiracy to provide money for terrorist acts in Israel". The indicted included Mousa Abu Marzook, who had left the US in 1997. On February 1, 2007, two men were acquitted of contravening United States law by supporting Hamas. Both men argued that they helped move money for Palestinian causes aimed at helping the Palestinian people and not to promote terrorism.
In January 2009, a Federal prosecutor accused the Council on American–Islamic Relations of having links to a charity designated as a support network for Hamas. The Justice Department identified CAIR as an "un-indicted co-conspirator" in the Holy Land Foundation case. Later, a federal appeals court removed that label for all parties and instead, named them "joint venturers". CAIR was never charged with any crime, and it complained that the designation had tarnished its reputation.