A British charity that distributes aid in the Palestinian territories and is backed by George Galloway, the Respect MP, is at the centre of a police investigation in Australia.

Interpal, a London-based aid network set up in the early 1990s to provide healthcare to refugees in the West Bank, was investigated by the Charity Commission in 1996 and in 2003 after allegations that it was supporting the Palestinian militant organisation Hamas but was cleared on both occasions. However, it is currently being investigated by the commission for a third time.

It was banned in the US in 2003 on the ground that it was using its global humanitarian missions as a cover for generating money on behalf of Hamas and was outlawed in Australia in 2003 for allegedly being linked to terrorist activities.

Interpal's legal representatives applied to the Australian Government to have its proscription revoked in June 2004 but on August 12, 2005, the request was rejected by Alexander Downer, the Australian Foreign Minister at the time.

Interpal is now the subject of a police inquiry, with the Australian Federal Police (AFP) investigating the group's affiliation with Muslim Aid Australia (MAA), a prominent charity that admitted channelling aid to the Palestinian territories through the banned organisation - a criminal offence under the Charter of the United Nations Act for Australian individuals or groups.

The AFP's inquiry led to the MAA headquarters in Sydney being raided in July.

Mr Galloway nominated Interpal, also known as the Palestinian Relief and Development Fund, as his charity of choice when he appeared in the television reality show Celebrity Big Brother in 2006, raising more than £300,000. He defended his Interpal donation when he was contacted by The Times. “I chose to nominate Interpal because it was and is putting food in the mouths of starving children in Gaza when other charities have pulled out,” he said.

Hamas, which emerged in 1987 as the Palestinian branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, has political, social and military wings. Its military wing, Izz al-Din al-Qassem Brigades, which has been responsible for numerous suicide attacks in Israel, was banned by the Home Office in 2001.

A Charity Commission spokeswoman said its current inquiry was examining whether Interpal had any “indirect” links to Hamas. “The scope of the investigation includes concerns about the potential for indirect and inappropriate links between the charity and organisations or individuals who appear to support the militant or terrorist activities of Hamas and the connected duties and responsibilities of the trustees,” she said.

She would not say when the inquiry results would be revealed.

An Interpal staff member, who did not want to be named, told The Times he was confident that the group would be cleared by the Charity Commission. “From the evidence that we have presented them, I feel confident that they don't have any evidence [against us],” he said.

“We are now just waiting for the results, which are expected to be released soon.”

According to the US Treasury Department list of specially designated nationals and blocked persons, Interpal is also known by 13 other names.

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