U.S. puts three Hamas leaders on terror blacklist

The United States on Tuesday put three senior members of the Palestinian movement Hamas, including two freed by Israel in exchange for captive soldier Gilad Shalit, on its terror blacklist.

The State Department said Hamas operatives Yehia Sinwar and Rawhi Mushtaha along with military commander Mohammad Deif had been named “specially designated global terrorists” under U.S. law.

The United States also placed Samir Kuntar, a Lebanese militant notorious for the murder of three Israeli civilians including a young girl, on its terror blacklist.

Israel released Kuntar as part of a prisoner exchange in 2008, three decades after the killings, and he has since become a high-profile figure in the Lebanese armed movement Hezbollah.