The US Department of Health and Human Services is investigating what happened to $30 million it sent to a Muslim nonprofit to help resettle Afghan refugees in the United States, The Washington Post has learned.
The department is the latest to look into the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) amid accusations that it has ties to dangerous groups in foreign countries including the terrorist group Hamas.
In letters to the governors of California and Washington, where the $30 million was sent, the Department of Health and Human Services — headed by Robert Kennedy Jr. — claims it has received information that “raises concerns about the business practices and ethics of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and CAIR-California.”
The June 9 letters to the Democratic governors, written by Assistant Secretary of State for Finance Gustave Chiarello, say the Department of Health and Human Services was informed that “there may be contacts between CAIR and the Muslim Brotherhood and its Palestinian affiliate, Hamas.”
“As you are aware, the US State Department has designated Hamas as a foreign terrorist organization. The Department of Health and Human Services takes these allegations very seriously, as the Department may not conduct business with entities with ties to such designated organizations.
The letter adds that these allegations are being investigated and, if proven, could result in “suspension and proposed debarment.”
Rulers Texas and Florida The Council on American-Islamic Relations and the Muslim Brotherhood have both been designated as foreign terrorist organizations and transnational criminal organizations in 2025.
The Washington, D.C.-based Council on American-Islamic Relations did not respond to The Washington Post’s request for comment. The group, led by National Executive Director Nihad Awad, strongly denies having any ties to terrorist organizations and says it only operates in the United States. She also denied any connection with the Muslim Brotherhood.
Nearly 43,000 Afghans were resettled in California between 2016 and 2025 using special humanitarian visas, with Sacramento being the most common area they went to live, according to data obtained by the site. Abridged.org. Since President Trump returned to office, between 200 and 300 Afghans per month have been admitted to the United States in 2025, a number that has since dropped to zero.
HHS said CAIR-CA’s most recent audit report for 2024 reported receiving $36.45 million from its Office of Refugee Resettlement. In Washington state, the Department of Health and Human Services said it has allocated nearly $1.3 million for the CAIR-WA chapter of the Washington Department of Social and Health Services.
The US Department of Justice’s Executive Office for Immigration Review also began an investigation last year into federal funds allocated by the Council on American-Islamic Relations in California to help resettle Afghan refugees.
The letters sent by the Department of Health and Human Services urged both California Governor Gavin Newsom and Washington Governor Bob Ferguson to contact the Office of the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services “if you become aware of any fraud or violations of relevant regulations governing the administration of funds granted to CAIR.”
CAIR says it has provided legal services for more than that 1,800 Afghan citizens Using grants in California.
In his statement calling the Council on American-Islamic Relations a terrorist group last year, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott accused them of supporting terrorism and of being “radical extremists” who aim to “subvert our laws through violence, intimidation and harassment.”