'His father funded Saddam Hussein!': Abdul El-Sayed's 'controversial family' paid $780,000 to Iraq?

Summary

Michigan Democratic Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed is facing scrutiny over his family’s links to Life for Relief and Development, an Islamic charity previously investigated over financial dealings with Iraq. Reports cited in the video say El-Sayed’s father, Imam Dr. Mohammed El-Sayed, has served on the charity’s board since at least 2020, and that his father-in-law was also formerly a board member.

According to a U.S. Treasury settlement document, the charity likely violated U.S. sanctions between September 2002 and March 2003 by transferring money from the United States to Iraq through Jordan. The government said senior management knew about the transfers. The organization paid $780,000 to settle the matter with the Office of Foreign Assets Control, and the case was later closed.

The video also recounts a 2004 U.S. military raid on the charity’s Baghdad office and an FBI search of its offices in 2006. Separate reporting cited alleged Muslim Brotherhood connections involving some people associated with the charity. It also noted that El-Sayed’s mother previously worked for an organization whose global network the Treasury Department designated in 2004 for supporting Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda, and the Taliban. The video stresses that these reported family and organizational connections do not establish that El-Sayed himself was involved in wrongdoing.

The controversy has become part of the Senate campaign. Donald Trump has called El-Sayed a jihadist and radical leftist, alleged that he belongs to the Muslim Brotherhood, and claimed that he wants Sharia law. El-Sayed denies having Muslim Brotherhood ties. He called attacks on his loyalty to the Constitution shameful, affirmed that he would uphold the Constitution, and argued that voters should focus on issues such as costs and access to health care.

El-Sayed also discussed his record working with law enforcement, including support for recruitment and compensation, community violence prevention, and improving response times at a forensic office.

In a separate exchange, a questioner challenged him over allegations that a juvenile detention center he oversaw faced possible closure and that children received expired medication. El-Sayed said the facility was severely overcrowded and understaffed, with far more children than it was designed to hold. He said he increased funding and staff pay, helped build an additional facility, and worked to improve conditions, while acknowledging that the institution remained problematic.

Presenters and contributors

• Unnamed Economic Times narrator — Introduces and summarizes the reports.
• Donald Trump — Comments attacking El-Sayed.
• Abdul El-Sayed — Responds to the allegations and discusses his record.
• Charles — Raises allegations about the juvenile detention center; surname not given.

Mike Rogers and Jon Ossoff are mentioned in the subtitles but are not heard contributing to the report.