The Al-Khoei Benevolent Foundation describes itself as an international Shia religious and charitable institution founded in 1989. Its Queens headquarters operates prayer services in Arabic, Persian, Urdu and English, alongside a library, conference facilities, religious education, a school and funeral-washing facilities.
Financial records show that the Alavi Foundation gave the Al-Khoei Benevolent Foundation $25,000 in 2013. Al-Khoei’s own website has also published material praising Alavi’s support for religious, educational, cultural and community programs.
Alavi has faced years of scrutiny over connections to Tehran. In 2013, the U.S. Justice Department announced a court judgment finding that the company owning Alavi’s Manhattan office tower had been secretly controlled by the Iranian government and had violated sanctions and money-laundering laws.
