Militant Islam Monitor > Articles > Islamic Relief USA -IRUSA -New Name -IDEA -Can't Hide Their Ties To Jihad Funding & Jew Hating Islamic Relief Worldwide-IRW

Islamic Relief USA -IRUSA -New Name -IDEA -Can't Hide Their Ties To Jihad Funding & Jew Hating Islamic Relief Worldwide-IRW

IDEA-Islamic Development & Empowerment In America = Islamic Relief USA & Islamic Relief Worldwide UK Under Scrutiny For Terror Ties
October 16, 2026

Islamic Relief USA is Now IDEA – New Name, Same Terror

"It is an evolution of the identity, not a departure from the history."

October 9, 2026 by Joe Kaufman 4 Comments

Islamic Relief USA has a new name: IDEA, short for Islamic Development & Empowerment in America. But according to the organization itself, virtually everything behind the new name remains the same. This is concerning, as the group has significant links to terror.

On its new website, IDEA asks the question directly: "Is this still the same organization?" Its answer is unequivocal: "Yes."

IDEA states that it remains the same 501(c)(3), operating under the same federal EIN, 95-4453134, "with the same leadership and the same teams." It assures donors that recurring contributions will continue funding "the same programs and the same mission." Indeed, IDEA describes the rebranding as "an evolution of the identity, not a departure from the history."

That history is replete with conflict and Muslim fanaticism.

The name change follows a bitter rupture between Islamic Relief USA (IRUSA) and Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW), the UK-based international organization with which it had long been affiliated. In March 2026, IRUSA sued IRW in federal court in New York, alleging, among other things, breach of contract and tortious interference.

Then, on September 12, Islamic Relief Worldwide announced that its International General Assembly had voted unanimously to expel IRUSA from the Islamic Relief federation, effective immediately. IRW stated that IRUSA no longer had the right to operate or trade using the Islamic Relief name or assets under the federation's arrangements.

IDEA presents the transition differently. On its website, it states that the American organization had been "consistently confused" with Islamic Relief Worldwide by government regulators and institutional partners and that the new name establishes its "distinct American identity."

Yet the relationship between the two organizations involved considerably more than similar names.

According to information cited by the House Ways and Means Committee, IRUSA was recently IRW's largest single contributor. In 2022, the American organization provided £67 million to IRW, approximately 29 percent of IRW's total income. The previous year, IRUSA contributed £54.3 million, approximately 44 percent of IRW's revenue.

That relationship became the subject of congressional scrutiny. House Ways and Means Committee Chairman Jason Smith initiated referrals to the Internal Revenue Service concerning IRUSA's tax-exempt status and financial relationship with IRW. In October 2025, Smith again referred IRUSA to the IRS for possible revocation of its tax-exempt status.

Islamic Relief Worldwide itself has faced years of allegations and government action concerning extremism and terrorism. Israel accused IRW of funneling money to Hamas. The United Arab Emirates placed Islamic Relief on its terrorism list, while Bangladesh barred the organization from working with Rohingya refugees amid concerns about radicalization. Major financial institutions, including HSBC, Credit Suisse and UBS, have also severed relationships with IRW amid terrorism-financing concerns.

But IDEA cannot attribute every controversy to its former international affiliate.

Its own leadership has generated controversy.

Former IRUSA Chairman Khaled Lamada used social media to praise the Muslim Brotherhood and defend Hamas. In June 2016, Lamada posted on Twitter that it was "absurd" for an Egyptian judge to classify Hamas "as a terrorist organization." As well, according to the Middle East Forum, Lamada "circulated text" hailing the "Mujahidin of Egypt" and Hamas for "inflicting defeats" against Jews.

Current board member Esam Omeish has an even more troubling history. In a 2000 speech, Omeish told a Muslim audience that Palestinians had "known that the jihad way is the way to liberate your land" and urged those present to share in their jihad. The controversy surrounding Omeish later resulted in his resignation from Virginia's Commission on Immigration.

IRUSA's activities have raised additional concerns.

The organization is known to sponsor events featuring radicals. One, held less than a year ago at the Islamic Association of Raleigh, in North Carolina, showcased London-based commentator Sami Hamdi. Following Hamas's October 7 massacre, Hamdi described the attack as a "defiant display of force" and said it "inspires" others. Days later, he told an audience to "Celebrate the victory!"

The pattern extends to South Florida.

Islamic Relief USA has been the "Premiere Sponsor" for all of the South Florida Muslim Federation's annual pro-Hamas conferences. Its 2024 conference was shut down when influencers from the community – led by this author – showed hotel management how the event's main speakers had glorified Hamas militants and kidnappers following the October 7 massacre in Israel.

At the 2025 conference, merchandise was advertised and sold featuring now deceased Hamas leader and October 7 mastermind Yahya Sinwar and armed and masked militants from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine, which like Hamas is a U.S. designated foreign terrorist organization.

IDEA's new website repeatedly emphasizes continuity. "Same team. Different name." Its leadership remains. Its teams remain. Its programs remain. Its mission remains. Its EIN remains.

IDEA itself says the change is "not a departure from the history."

On that point, there should be little disagreement.

A new logo and four new letters do not erase the extreme record of the organization behind them. If IDEA is the same organization Islamic Relief USA was yesterday, then the terror associated with it is no different as well.

Beila Rabinowitz, Director of Militant Islam Monitor, contributed to this report.

https://www.frontpagemag.com/islamic-relief-usa-is-now-idea-new-name-same-terror/

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