Texas – “Every time you think the Abdul El-Sayed story can’t get worse, another page of the family resume drops,” Sen. Ted Cruz wrote on X on Aug. 18, responding to a report about the Democratic Michigan Senate candidate’s biological mother and her former work for the Islamic American Relief Agency.
Cruz’s post came after the National Republican Senatorial Committee shared claims about Fatten Fathy Elkomy, El-Sayed’s biological mother, who worked for the Islamic American Relief Agency, or IARA, from 1999 until at least 2004. The organization was designated by the U.S. Treasury Department in 2004 as a specially designated global terrorist organization over allegations that its international network provided financial support to Osama bin Laden, al-Qaida, the Taliban and Hamas, ABCNews4 reported.
The report has become a new line of Republican attacks against El-Sayed, who won the Democratic nomination for Michigan’s open U.S. Senate seat earlier this month and is now preparing for the general election against Republican Mike Rogers.
The controversy centers on Elkomy’s employment with IARA rather than any allegation that she personally participated in terrorism or knowingly supported terrorist organizations.
According to reporting by the New York Post, Elkomy worked for IARA from 1999 through at least 2004. The organization presented itself as a humanitarian group involved in healthcare, assistance to orphans and aid to disadvantaged people in conflict areas. Elkomy has not been accused of criminal wrongdoing in connection with the organization.
The Treasury Department’s 2004 designation, however, was extensive. Officials said information available to the U.S. indicated that overseas branches of IARA provided hundreds of thousands of dollars to bin Laden in 1999. Treasury also said IARA had connections to a predecessor organization of al-Qaida and had worked with an institute controlled by bin Laden that provided assistance to Taliban fighters.
Treasury further alleged that IARA had served as a conduit for funds to Hamas in the Palestinian territories. The department said money raised through IARA collection boxes was directed toward terrorist activities, including attacks against Israelis.
IARA later faced a separate federal criminal case involving the transfer of money to Iraq in violation of U.S. sanctions.
In 2016, the Islamic American Relief Agency pleaded guilty to charges related to transferring nearly $1.4 million to Iraq in violation of federal sanctions. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, IARA admitted that it secretly funneled $1.375 million to Iraq. The organization also agreed to dissolve and not re-form under another corporate structure.
The criminal case, however, did not establish that Elkomy herself committed a terrorism-related offense. The New York Post reported that she was never accused of wrongdoing and that the individuals cited in the federal case were not charged with terrorism-related crimes.
Elkomy also publicly rejected allegations connecting the organization to terrorism during a 2004 interview. She said at the time that her work involved helping orphans and children who had lost at least one parent.
The issue has surfaced as El-Sayed attempts to broaden his appeal following his Democratic primary victory.
El-Sayed, a physician and former Detroit health official, defeated U.S. Rep. Haley Stevens in the Aug. 4 Democratic primary. His victory made him the Democratic nominee for the open Senate seat, and he is now preparing for a general election against Rogers, the Republican nominee. ABC News described the next phase of the campaign as a coalition test for El-Sayed, who must appeal beyond the progressive, younger and Arab American voters who helped him win the primary.
El-Sayed’s campaign has emphasized economic issues, healthcare and reducing corporate influence in politics. His campaign has also sought to present him as a candidate capable of bringing together voters from different backgrounds.
The controversy involving his mother adds another issue to an increasingly contentious campaign.
Republican groups have highlighted Elkomy’s former employment with IARA as they seek to raise questions about El-Sayed’s background and political views. Cruz amplified the criticism with his Aug. 18 post, saying another part of El-Sayed’s “family resume” had emerged.
The NRSC made a stronger allegation in its post, claiming that El-Sayed’s mother “worked for a TERROR GROUP that directly funded Osama bin Laden, the Taliban, and Hamas.” That wording, however, does not establish that Elkomy herself funded those organizations. The federal and Treasury records describe allegations and actions involving IARA and its international network, while reporting has found no allegation that Elkomy personally committed terrorism-related wrongdoing.
The distinction is significant as the claims continue circulating during the Senate campaign. The available reporting establishes Elkomy’s employment with IARA and the U.S. government’s subsequent designation of the organization, as well as its later guilty plea over illegal transfers to Iraq. It does not establish that Elkomy personally supported bin Laden, the Taliban or Hamas.
El-Sayed’s campaign had not publicly provided a detailed response to the allegations in the reports cited above at the time of the latest coverage.
The dispute comes at a critical point in Michigan’s Senate race, with both parties preparing for a general election in a closely watched battleground state. El-Sayed’s progressive primary victory energized his supporters, but his ability to expand his coalition will be central to his effort to defeat Rogers in November.
Cruz’s comments have now added the controversy surrounding El-Sayed’s mother to the broader Republican campaign against the Democratic nominee, turning a decades-old connection involving a humanitarian organization into a new political issue in the 2026 Michigan Senate race.
