Socialist Twitch star Hasan Piker raises $1 million for Palestinian aid
Social Media Personality Hasan Piker attends the premiere of National Geographic documentary films' 'Jane' at the Hollywood Bowl on October 9, 2017 in Hollywood, California. (Photo by Paul Archuleta/FilmMagic)
Leftist commentator Hasan Piker raised more than $1 million for Palestinian medical relief in a matter of days through a Twitch campaign.
"I'm incredibly proud of you guys," Piker told his fans as the donations poured in. "It's incredible, it's unimaginable, it is ridiculous. This is where this community thrives."
More than 1,400 Israeli civilians and soldiers have died since Hamas launched a surprise attack on Oct. 7. Retaliatory strikes from Israel have killed more than 4,000 Palestinians and injured thousands more, according to the Gaza health ministry.
Piker launched the fundraiser about a week ago. Fans raised $180,000 in the first 40 minutes and surpassed $1 million as of Wednesday afternoon. Piker kicked in at least $50,000, according to the Tiltify page.
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The funds will be split between ANERA, Palestinian Children's Relief Fund, Palestine Red Crescent Society and Medical Aid for Palestinians, according to Piker.
Piker did not respond to an interview request from Fox News about the fundraiser.
A self-described socialist, Piker is one of the most-watched streamers on Twitch. The live-streaming service is often used by gamers, but Piker has amassed millions of followers for his political commentary. He previously contributed to the left-leaning news and commentary outlet The Young Turks, which his uncle co-founded.
He has been a vocal critic of the "colonial apartheid" and accuses Israel of imposing on Palestinians. In a recent stream, he unleashed a profanity-laden tirade justifying Hamas' invasion.
"If they f---ing subjugated you to a open-air prison your whole f---ing life, you're going to break out eventually when you realize that there is no other way to get out of it," Piker said. "Do you think that this happened out of nowhere? Do you think this happened out of thin air? Are you f---ing stupid? Do you think that the Israeli state was just, like, peacefully co-existing and then these guys came in with f---ing gliders out of nowhere?"
Thursday, Piker took a dig at President Biden, who announced $100 million in new U.S. funding for humanitarian assistance in Gaza and the West Bank. Speaking in Israel, Biden said the money would help "1 million displaced and conflict-affected Palestinians."
In response, Piker posted on X, "damn, we raised a million for palestine, step your game up brandon."
Humanitarian funds for Palestinians have been a hot-button issue for years, with critics arguing aid will fall into the hands of Hamas.
State Department officials previously warned that sending U.S. aid to the Gaza Strip could risk benefiting terrorist groups, while also arguing that such a trade-off is necessary for national security.
"We assess there is a high risk Hamas could potentially derive indirect, unintentional benefit from U.S. assistance to Gaza," the State Department wrote in a March 2021 draft sanctions exemption request obtained by the Washington Free Beacon. It is unclear if the warning made it into the final request.
On one of his hours-long livestreams, Piker acknowledged the "great difficulty in getting money into Gaza for obvious reasons" and said the four charities he selected are "heavily scrutinized."