Adam Hamawy, a plastic surgeon and Democratic candidate to replace retiring Rep. Bonnie Watson Coleman in New Jersey, is facing renewed scrutiny over his past ties to organizations and figures later linked to Islamist extremism, including convicted terrorist leader Sheikh Omar Abdel-Rahman, the “Blind Sheikh,” according to a recent report from Jewish Insider.
The controversy has now drawn criticism from survivors and relatives of victims of the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, many of whom say Hamawy’s past associations should disqualify him from public office.
Bosnia trip and Benevolence International ties
One year before Hamawy testified on behalf of Abdel-Rahman during the sheikh’s 1995 terrorism trial, he traveled to Bosnia during the country’s civil war and volunteered with the Benevolence International Foundation, a Chicago-based charity later accused by U.S. authorities of functioning as a logistical and financial support network for al-Qaeda.
In a 1996 interview with the Newark Star-Ledger, Hamawy described working in Sarajevo and Zenica, delivering medical supplies to hospitals and remote areas during the war.
Years later, both cities became central to investigations into Benevolence International’s operations in the Balkans. Bosnian and U.S. authorities raided the organization’s offices in 2002, and the 9/11 Commission later identified the Sarajevo office as part of a broader network established by associates of Osama bin Laden to support terrorist activity during the early 1990s.
Questions about Abdel-Rahman relationship
Court records from Abdel-Rahman’s federal terrorism trial show Hamawy met the cleric in 1991 while he was a medical student. He reportedly visited Abdel-Rahman’s residence, traveled with him to Detroit, and served as a translator during a press conference in which the sheikh denied involvement in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing.
Hamawy later testified as a character witness for Abdel-Rahman, who was eventually convicted of plotting attacks against New York City landmarks and infrastructure.
The 1993 bombing killed six people and injured more than 1,000.
Michael Macko, whose father William Macko died in the attack, told The Washington Free Beacon he could never support Hamawy’s candidacy.
“I would never vote for Hamawy because of this,” Macko said, adding that even as a lifelong Democrat, he would rather write in another candidate than support someone connected to figures tied to his father’s death.
Macko also questioned whether Hamawy could plausibly claim ignorance about Abdel-Rahman’s extremism given how close the two appeared to be.
Survivors speak out
James Outerbridge, who survived both the 1993 bombing and the Sept. 11 attacks, said the first bombing remained deeply traumatic decades later.
“What had happened [in 1993] not only affected me, but was a precursor to 9/11,” Outerbridge told the Free Beacon.
Outerbridge said people with those kinds of past associations should not be trusted with political power. “He doesn’t deserve to run for political office in our country,” he said.
Charles Maikish, who directed the Port Authority’s World Trade Department at the time of the attack, also condemned Hamawy’s relationship with Abdel-Rahman.
“I was sitting at my desk in Tower One when the tower heaved,” Maikish recalled. “And I knew something had happened.”
“Personally, it disgusts me,” Maikish said of Hamawy’s association with the sheikh. “For somebody that has befriended that group, or the head of that sect that perpetrated such a heinous crime, to me, is just totally against what would be a free, open, democratic society.”
Progressive endorsements despite controversy
Despite the renewed scrutiny, Hamawy has emerged as a prominent progressive candidate in the race. He has secured endorsements from Sen. Bernie Sanders and Reps. Ro Khanna, Ilhan Omar, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, and Rashida Tlaib.
Hamawy has campaigned heavily on his later military service, highlighting his work as a U.S. Army officer during the Global War on Terror and his service at military hospitals in Iraq.
He has described the Bosnia trip as a humanitarian mission, though public accounts have contained differing timelines about the trip and his role there.
Federal investigations and lingering questions
Federal prosecutors later accused Benevolence International and its executive director, Enaam Arnaout, of funneling money and weapons to Bosnian fighters and foreign mujahideen units operating near Zenica — the same region where Hamawy said he worked.
Historian Marko Atila Hoare said many foreign volunteers traveled to Bosnia during the war believing they were defending persecuted Muslims, and cautioned against assuming every volunteer associated with those charities was knowingly part of a jihadist movement.
Still, questions remain about the network surrounding Hamawy’s Bosnia work. The Star-Ledger reported that Hamawy connected with Benevolence International through the Bosnian mission to the United States. At the time, New Jersey imam Saffet Catovic served as a counselor and deputy ambassador at the Bosnian mission in New York.
Catovic later became a spokesman for Benevolence International during federal raids in 2001 and has remained active in Muslim civic organizations in New Jersey. He also hosted Hamawy on a Gaza-related panel discussion last year, and members of his family have donated to Hamawy’s campaign.
Neither Hamawy’s campaign nor Catovic responded to questions about possible connections between the Bosnia mission and Hamawy’s volunteer work.
Arnaout later pleaded guilty to racketeering charges after admitting he diverted charitable donations to support Bosnian military efforts. Benevolence International remains designated as a terrorist-linked entity by both the U.S. Treasury Department and the United Nations Security Council.
More recently, Hamawy has also drawn attention for volunteer medical work in Gaza, including service at a hospital later targeted by Israeli forces during operations against Hamas infrastructure. He has publicly disputed Israeli claims that Hamas activity occurred at the facility.
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