Emiraten - nytt centrum för terrorfinansiering ?

Västvärlden har under de senaste åren

fått Saudiarabien att strama åt de islamiska

stiftelsernas användning av zakat, den religiösa

skatten. Det handlar om miljardbelopp som

under många år missbrukats genom alltifrån

att sprida wahhabism i Europa till direkt

terrorfinansiering av Al Qaeda, Hamas och

talibanerna.

Nu kontrollerar saudiska regeringen hur

stiftelserna utövar sin islamiska välgörenhet.

Det är ännu så länge ett grovmaskigt kontrollnät....

Stora belopp från Saudiarabien hamnar fortfarande

hos terroristerna, men helt klart går det

i rätt riktning.

Samtidigt håller Kuwait och Emiraten på att

utvecklas till nya centra för extremism- och

terrorfinansiering...

Läs Matthew Levitts vittnesmål inför ett

kongressutskott igår.

***

While the Treasury Department reports that

many of the charities al-Qaeda has relied on

in the past as a source of funds have been

disrupted or deterred from continuing such

activity, the department has also noted that

charities serving as fronts for terrorist groups

often open up under new names soon after

they are shut down.
After a flurry of designations in the period after

9-11, Treasury has continued to designate

charities tied to al-Qaeda and its affiliates
on a regular basis.

These include a number of NGOs based in

Saudi Arabia, such as the International Islamic

Relief Organization (IIRO) and al-Haramain,
as well as the Kuwait-based Revival of Islamic
Heritage Society (RIHS).
Also in June 2008, the U.S. Treasury Department
designated the entirety of another Gulf-based

charity, the Kuwaiti Revival of Islamic Heritage

Society (RIHS).
In January 2002 the U.S. government and United
Nations designated the Afghanistan and Pakistan
offices of RIHS, but despite these and other
actions—like the closure or raid of six RIHS

offices from Azerbaijan to Cambodia—the

organization continued to engage in support

for al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups,

according to the U.S. government.
Announcing the designations, Treasury

informed that RIHS leadership not only

“actively managed all aspects of the

organization’s day-to-day operations,”

but was fully aware of its illegitimate
activities. Such activities included RIHS

financing for the operations of the Pakistan-

based Lashkar-e-Taiba, the group responsible

for the 2006 Mumbai commuter train attack

and the 2001 attack on the Indian Parliament.

Similarly, an RIHS employee provided logistical

support to then-fugitive Jemah Islamiyah (JI)

leader “Hambali,” while the RIHS office in

Bangladesh was accused of funding the military
activities of Jamaat Mujahedin Bangladesh, the

group that launched near-simultaneous bombings

across Bangladesh in 2005.

RIHS funded al-Qaeda and other groups in Somalia

as well, according to Treasury.
Speaking in the Gulf, Treasury Undersecretary Stuart
Levey noted that “terrorist organizations and al-
Qaeda raise money in the Gulf by going to individual
donors and through charities.” This was evident
in 2006, when Treasury designated Abd al- Hamid
al-Mujil, executive director of the Eastern Province
office of the International Islamic Relief Organization
(IIRO), described by fellow jihadists as the “million
dollar man” for his support of Islamic militant groups.
According to the public statement announcing his

designation, Mujil boasted a long history of

financing al-Qaeda and its Southeast Asian affiliates,
the Abu Sayyaf Group and Jemah Islamiyah.

****