As we count down the last few days towards our 2026 midterm elections, the October Surprises just seem to keep popping up. The latest comes to us from Michigan, where the father of that state's Democrat Senate hopeful, Abdul El-Sayed, has been found to be on the board of an Islamic charity that once funneled funds to the late, unlamented Iraqi dictator, Saddam Hussein.
Michigan Senate hopeful Abdul El-Sayed’s father sits on the board of an Islamic charity that was previously accused of funneling cash to late Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s regime.
Imam Dr. Mohammed El-Sayed is currently a board member of Life for Relief and Development, a charity he’s worked with since at least 2020, according to tax forms.
In 2004, the US military and FBI raided Life for Relief and Development’s Baghdad facilities, confiscating 20 boxes and 12 computers amid suspicions that the charity had been aiding insurgents, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
Later, the Islamic charity’s public relations coordinator Muthanna al-Hanooti faced charges for serving as an unregistered agent for Hussein’s government and pleaded guilty to flouting the International Emergency Economic Powers Act.
There's a catch; Abdul El-Sayed's father has only been directly involved with this Islamic charity since 2020 — or, "at least 2020." But the links don't stop with Saddam Hussein.
“LRD’s highest management levels—i.e., its President—knew of the conduct giving rise to the apparent violations and directed the funds transfers to Iraq via Jordan,” the government noted around the time.
The group eventually reached a $780,000 settlement with the US government, which dropped its case against the charity in 2014.
The senior El-Sayed’s ties to the Islamic charity that sent money into Hussein’s Iraq were first reported by the Washington Free Beacon.
In addition to its history of sending money to Hussein’s regime, Life for Relief and Development has been accused of other ties to terrorism.
In 2006, the Michigan-based charity was raided by the FBI and, in 2007, its then-CEO was indicted by a grand jury for flouting money-laundering and sanctions laws.
The feds confiscated “correspondence, notes, e-mails, facsimiles and other documents and records” pertaining to the Islamic African Relief Agency, a group that was later shuttered after being exposed for supporting al Qaeda.
El-Sayed’s birth mother, Fatten Fathy Elkomy, briefly worked at the Islamic African Relief Agency.
This is, as someone once said, a big freaking deal.
Abdul El-Sayed has been taking a lot of heat over his implied support for Islamic terrorist groups. Whether it's enough to tip Michigan's Senate election away from him remains to be seen, though. And that's enough to make one wonder: Just what, exactly, is enough to make today's Democrat Party turn its back on a candidate? Apparently ties to Islamic terrorist groups won't do it. Neither will possible immigration fraud, although in this case the scales may indeed be tilting, at least a little. And, recruiting fake candidates? Well, that one's still playing out.
Now, to be fair, Abdul El-Sayed isn't responsible for any misdeeds of his father. But this should nevertheless raise some questions as to how far that apple fell from the tree. Does the state of Michigan really feel confident in handing a seat in the United States Senate to a man from this background, to a man who hems and haws when asked about his support for odious groups like Hamas?
Watch this race next week.
Editor’s Note: The 2026 Midterms will determine the fate of President Trump’s America First agenda. Republicans must maintain control of both chambers of Congress.
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