US court rejects Bashar Masri’s bid to pause discovery in alleged Hamas support, Oct. 7 lawsuit

A US federal judge rejected a request by Palestinian-American businessman Bashar Masri and other defendants to halt evidence gathering in a lawsuit accusing them of providing material support to Hamas in connection with the October 7, 2023, attacks.

Judge Darrin P. Gayles of the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida denied the motion on October 1, following a hearing that day. He ordered the parties to submit a joint scheduling report and proposed scheduling order by October 16.

The decision allows discovery, the process through which parties seek documents, testimony, and other evidence, to proceed. The order addressed the timing of evidence gathering and made no finding on the underlying allegations.

The civil lawsuit was brought by American victims of the attacks and victims’ relatives and estate representatives under the US Anti-Terrorism Act. It alleges that Masri and companies he controls assisted Hamas and provided infrastructure used by the terrorist organization. 

The plaintiffs allege that properties Masri owned, developed or controlled, including two Gaza hotels and the Gaza Industrial Estate, concealed Hamas tunnels and entrances. They also allege that solar installations at the properties supplied electricity to the tunnels. 

Masri decries allegations of Hamas ties as 'baseless'

Masri has previously denied wrongdoing. His office called the lawsuit “baseless” when it was filed in April 2025 and said neither he nor the businesses involved had supported violence or militancy.

In a May 2026 motion seeking dismissal, his lawyers argued that the plaintiffs had failed to establish that he knew his conduct could help Hamas carry out attacks, Reuters reported. They said the defendants condemned Hamas’s violence and characterized the allegations as speculation based on participation in Gaza’s economic development. 

Masri is known for developing Rawabi, a planned Palestinian city in the West Bank. He resigned from the dean’s council at Harvard Kennedy School in April 2025 after the lawsuit was filed. 

The plaintiffs initially filed their case in Washington in April 2025 before voluntarily dismissing that action and refiling in Florida, according to a January court order. The October 1 ruling requires both sides to propose a timetable for the proceedings.