Fifty-four families of American citizens who were impacted by the October 7 Massacre are set to file a lawsuit against Iran for its support of Hamas on Friday.
The suit filed with the United States District Court for the District of Columbia by law firm Dr. Gideon Fisher & Coclaims 500 million dollars for mental and bodily harm caused by the Iranian regime through alleged financing, arming, and abetting of Gazan terrorist organizations.
The plaintiffs and their families, which include Israeli citizens, suffered from Hamas's attacks on sites such as the Nova Music Festival, Sderot, Zikim beach, and Kissufim.
Plaintiff Gal Levy, whose father is an American citizen, was wounded by gunfire at the Nova festival and has undergone extensive surgeries and rehabilitation.
"I feel the injury every day, because I still have fragments in my body and also mentally I live the moments of horror, when I was lying wounded, in the building at the entrance to Nova, and a terrorist came in and took our cellphones," Levy said in a statement. "I saw the evil and cruelty with my eyes. I feel it is a mission to tell our story in court as well. I hope that this lawsuit will do justice and send an important message to the countries on the axis of evil that support terrorism."
One of the firms representing the plaintiffs, Gideon Fisher & Co, reportedly collected testimony of the massacres and atrocities from 1,250 family members of victims. They've also gathered opinions from security, medical, intelligence, and legal experts outlining direct and indirect Iranian involvement in the actions of Hamas and other Gazan terrorist groups.
"After many months of work, during which testimonies of victims impacted physically and mentally were collected and a team of international experts was assembled, our office is leading an important legal and moral process of filing damages claims against Iran and other partners of Hamas, who are behind the criminal attack against Israeli and American citizens on 10/7," said Attorney Dr. Gideon Fisher. "Beyond the war effort, we are required to act and fight Hamas and its supporters in the legal and civil realm as well."
Other suits against Syria to follow
The suit is part of a series of legal actions filed by Fisher's team, claiming billions of shekels. A corresponding lawsuit is set to be filed in the coming days on behalf of the same plaintiffs and families against Syria for its support of Hamas.
Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs analyst and former military prosecutor Attorney Maurice Hirsch said in a statement that Iranian financial support allowed Islamic terrorists to operation worldwide.
"A very significant part of dealing with this phenomenon is extracting a price, through the filing of civil lawsuits, in as many countries as possible, against those actors that are directly and indirectly responsible for terrorism," said Hirsch. "In this way, not only do we obtain compensation for the victims of terrorism, but we also punish the perpetrators of terrorism."
Designated a state sponsor of terrorism, it is possible to seek litigation against Iran under the 2016 Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act.
In February 67 US and Israeli nationals filed a lawsuit for the harm caused by Iran through its support of Hamas culminating in the October 7 Massacre.
In some past cases against Iran for terrorism support, American victims have been compensated through the 2015 US Victims of State Sponsored Terrorism Fund rather than payments directly from Tehran. The USVSST Fund has been funded by Iranian regime assets and finances seized by the US government, as well as settlements with other parties over terrorism financing.