FIRST ON FOX: A New York woman accused of leading a radical extremist group and posing with hand grenades in front of a Hamas flag has been arrested after allegedly funneling tens of thousands of dollars to a Palestinian terrorist organization.Catherine Beth Washburn, 37, of Irondequoit, a suburb of Rochester, is charged with attempting to provide material support to the Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ), a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization.If convicted, she faces up to 20 years in federal prison and a $250,000 fine.Washburn was the leader of the Direct Action Movement for Palestinian Liberation (DAMPL), a radical organization formed in the wake of the Oct.
7, 2023, Hamas terrorist attacks on Israel, according to the Justice Department.The federal complaint noted that DAMPL rejects peaceful protests, opting instead for "direct action," including property destruction and acts of sabotage against entities it associates with Israel.FBI ARRESTS 4 ALLEGED MEMBERS OF RADICAL PRO-PALESTINIAN GROUP ACCUSED OF PLOTTING NEW YEAR’S EVE BOMBINGSCatherine Beth Washburn pictured with two hand grenades in front of Hamas flag.(DOJ)Communications recovered by the FBI's Joint Terrorism Task Force revealed messages to a person claiming to be an active PIJ fighter in Gaza, where Washburn allegedly said she hated Jewish people "very much" and wished Israel "would disappear.""I wish every day were October 7th," Washburn is accused of writing in one exchange.
"If I lived in Gaza, I would fight alongside the resistance."Later, she allegedly said she felt "excited every time I see news of the killing of an occupation soldier."MAN LINKED TO HAMAS ATTACK ON ISRAEL INDICTED IN LOUISIANA FOR CONSPIRING TO SUPPORT TERRORIST GROUPPro-Palestinian protesters participate in a rally in Times Square in New York City, Oct.13, 2023.
(Spencer Platt/Getty Images, File)MAN LINKED TO HAMAS ATTACK ON ISRAEL INDICTED IN LOUISIANA FOR CONSPIRING TO SUPPORT TERRORIST GROUPU.S.Attorney Michael DiGiac...