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Recent Appearances... Rantburg

Home Front: WoT
Obama Administration Dropped Terror Funding Case Against Islamic Relief – One Of World's Largest Islamic Charities
2018-12-03
[D.C. Clothesline] The case was potentially bigger than the one against the Holy Land Foundation, the largest terrorism-financing case in American history. And, if prosecutions occurred, there would likely be a domino effect impacting many other Islamist organizations in America and around the world.

Then, near the end of the Obama Administration in 2016, the Justice Department declined to prosecute.

Federal agents were stunned.
You heard me, stunned. Absolutely stunned!
No clear reason was given.

The investigation into Islamic Relief
...more formally, the International Islamic Relief Organization, one of Osama bin Laden’s favourite charities and for many years the recipient of Saudi largess, including the current king, Salman ibn whoever. The UAE listed it as belonging to the Muslim Brotherhood, #44 on their 2014 blacklist ..
continued, but the criminal case presented by the three government agencies would not move forward.

The only reasonable speculation: The administration lacked the political will to take on the case.

Yes, because those "Islamist organizations" were Obama’s friends and allies.
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Arabia
Saudi Arabia’s New King Helped Fund Radical Terrorist Groups
2015-01-27
However, throughout his public career in government, Salman has embraced radical Muslim clerics and has been tied to the funding of radical groups in Afghanistan, as well as an organization found to be plotting attacks against America, according to various reports and information provided by David Weinberg, a senior fellow at the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies.

In 2001, an international raid of the Saudi High Commission for Aid to Bosnia, which Salman founded in 1993, unearthed evidence of terrorist plots against America, according to separate exposĂŠs written by Dore Gold, an Israeli diplomat, and Robert Baer, a former CIA officer.

Salman is further accused by Baer of having “personally approved all important appointments and spending” at the International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO), a controversial Saudi charity that was hit with sanctions following the attacks of September 11, 2001, for purportedly providing material support to al Qaeda.

Salman also has been reported to be responsible for sending millions of dollars to the radical mujahedeen that waged jihad in Afghanistan in the 1980s, according to Bruce Riedel, a former CIA officer who is now director of the Brookings Intelligence Project.

“In the early years of the war—before the U.S. and the Kingdom ramped up their secret financial support for the anti-Soviet insurgency—this private Saudi funding was critical to the war effort,” according to Riedel. “At its peak, Salman was providing $25 million a month to the mujahedeen. He was also active in raising money for the Bosnian Muslims in the war with Serbia.”
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Arabia
UAE blacklists 82 groups as 'terrorist'
2014-11-16
[ENGLISH.ALARABIYA.NET] The government of the United Arab Emirates formally endorsed on Saturday the designation of 82 organizations, including Egyptâs Muslim Brotherhood and the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), as terror groups, in line with a federal law on combating terrorism.

The list, published by the countryâs state-run WAM news agency, includes the Muslim Brotherhood, the groupâs local and regional affiliates, as well as Al-Qaeda-linked groups operating in different parts of the region.

Several brigades fighting on both sides in the Syrian conflict along with Islamist groups in Libya, Tunisia, Mali, Pakistan, Nigeriaâs Boko Haram as well as Afghanistan's Taliban account for the bulk of the list.

Shiite militants groups also figure in the list, including Shiite Hezbollah in the Gulf states and brigades with the same name in Iraq. Lebanonâs Iranian backed Hezbollah was not blacklisted.

In late August, UAE President Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Al-Nahayan enacted federal law number 7, which mandated the list to be published and circulated by the media to further âtransparencyâ and âincrease awarenessâ of terrorist threats.

The move follows a similar step taken by Saudi Arabia in March.

The groups blacklisted by the UAE were as follows:

1- UAEâs Muslim Brotherhood called Al-Islah
2- UAE terrorist cells
3- Karama organization
4- Uma Parties in the Gulf and Arabian Peninsula
5- Al-Qaeda
Finally got around to it...
6- Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS)
They prefer to be known as The Islamic State or as The Caliphate...
7- Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)
Formerly the aden-Abyan Islamic Army plus the Lions of the Arabian Peninsula
8- Yemenâs Ansar al-Sharia
... which sez they're not an al-Qaeda affiliate, otherwise they're indistinguishable from al-Qaeda.
9- Muslim Brotherhood, both the organization and movement
I don't think the Moslem Brü can properly be called a terrorist organization; it's more a subversive organization. We saw what happened when they achieved power in Egypt: one man, one vote, one time. Their belief that Islam is the Answer, regardless of the question makes them look foolish, but they are Moslems and they behave like Moslems do when they can't get their way.
10- Al-Gamaa Al-Islamiyya in Egypt
Zawahiri used to be the head of Gamaa al-Islamiya. I think they swore to non-violence to get their members out of jail.
11- Bait al-Maqdis group in Egypt
Formerly just al-Qaeda in the Sinai Peninsula, now sworn to the Islamic State
12- Ajnad Misr (Soldiers of Egypt group)
I think we've seen these guys once or maybe twice.
13- Majlis Shura Al-Mujahedin Fi Aknaf Bayt Al-Maqdis (Mujahidin Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem, or MSC)
14- Yemenâs Houthi movement
Aligned with Iran and with former President-for-Life Saleh.
15- Hezbollah party in Saudi Arabiaâs Hijaz
16- Hezbollah in the Gulf region
17- Al-Qaeda in Iran
I believe this is the "protected" al-Qaeda that the Medes and the Persians keep on a tight leash. If I had a bunch of money I'd do some intensive investigation on this group.
18- Badr organization in Iraq
19- Asaâib Ahl al-Haq, also known as the Khazali Network in Iraq
20- Fath al-Islam in Lebanon
This is our old friend, Fateh al-Islam. Probably they've been folded into al-Nusra or the Caliphate by now.
21- Osbat Al-Ansar or Asbat an-Ansar (League of the Partisans) in Lebanon
I believe Usbat al-Ansar lives in Ein al-Hellhole. They're the place to go when you're on the run. Every once in awhile they shoot one of the local Fatah muckety-mucks.
22- Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM)
I think AQIM has lost a lot: their debacle in Mali, the ego versus ego contest between Mokhtar versus Droukdel, and the fact that half of them have pledged to the Islamic State.
23- Ansar Al-Sharia in Libya
24- Ansar Al-Sharia in Tunisia
25- Al-Shabab in Somalia
26- Boko Haram in Nigeria
27- Al-Murabitoon brigade in Mali
That's Mokhtar Belmokhtar's mob...
28- Ansar Al-Din movement in Mali
29- Haqani network in Pakistan
30- Lashkar Taiba in Pakistan
31- Eastern Turkestan Islamic Movement headquartered in Pakistan
32- Mohammed Army in Pakistan
Jaish e-Muhammad...
33- Mohammed Army in India
34- Indian mujahideen in India/Kashmir
35- The Caucasus Emirate by Chechen militants
36- Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU)
37- Abu Sayyaf Islamist group in the Philippines
38- Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)
Nailed that one. Not a terrorist organization, but fellow travelers.
39- Alleanza Islamic d'Italia or Islamic Alliance in Italy
40- Islamic Association in Finland
41- Islamic Association in Norway
42- Islamic Relief Organization in the UK
43- The Cordoba Foundation in Britain
44- International Islamic Relief Organization belonging to the international Muslim Brotherhood
I think that's the one headed by bin Laden's brother-in-law or son-in-law...
45- Taliban movement in Pakistan
Mullah Omar...
46- Abu Thur al-Fiqari battalion in Syria
47- Al-Tawheed and Iman battalion in Syria
48- The Green Battalion or Al-Khadraa battalion in Syria
49- Al-Tawhid Brigade in Syria
50- Abu Bakr brigade in Syria
51- Talha bin Ubaidallah in Syria
52- Al-Sarim Al-Batar brigade in Syria
53- Abdullah bin Mubarak brigade in Syria
54- Convoys of Martyrs brigade in Syria
55- Abu Omar brigade in Syria
56- Ahrar Shumar or Free Shumars brigade in Syria
57- Hezbollah brigades in Iraq
58- Brigade of Abu Al-Fadl al-Abbas in Syria
59- Brigades of Al-Yom Al-Mawood (Destined Day in Iraq)
60- Battalion of Omar bin Yasir in Syria
61- Ansar Al-Islam group in Iraq
62- Nusra Front in Syira
63- Harakat Ahrar ash-Sham Al Islami (Islamic Movement of the Free Men of the Levant) in Syria
64- Jaish Al-Islam (Islam Army) in Palestine
65- Abdullah Azzam Brigades
I think they're being or have been absorbed by al-Nusra.
66- Kanvaz in Belgrade, Serbia
67- The Muslim American Society (MAS)
68- Union of Muslim Scholars
69- Union of Islamic Organizations in Europe
70- Union of Islamic Organizations of France
71- Muslim Association of Britain (MAB)
72- Islamic Society of Germany
73- Islamic Society in Denmark
74- Islamic Society in Belgium
75- Sariyat Al-Jabal brigade in Syria
76- Al-Shahbaa brigade in Syria
77- Al-QaâQaaâ in Syria
78- Sufian Al-Thawri (Revolutionary Sufian brigade) in Syria
79- Abdulraham brigade in Syria
80- Omar bin Al-Khatab brigade in Syria
81- Al-Shayma brigade in Syria
82- Al-Haq brigade in Syria
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Arabia
IIRO calls for quick relief aid to save millions of Yemenis
2012-07-09
(Saba) - The International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO) called on Wednesday all regional and international organizations to quickly provide relief aid to save millions of Yemenis, affected by unrest in some regions, from poverty, hungry and illness.

"According to UN reports ten million of Yemeni people are suffering from serious malnutrition and food shortages and are now in need of urgent relief assistance especially as more than one million children have become prey to malnutrition," IIRO secretary general Adnan al-Pasha said in a press statement issued today.

Al-Pasha pointed out that according to the reports, half the Yemeni population suffer from potable water shortages as well as poor sewerage systems.

The dramatic situation in Yemeni has also caused great suffering in terms of lack of medical services and medications. Hospitals and dispensaries halted their medical services completely that resulted in large numbers of fatalities.

The reports also showed that half a million Yemeni citizens have abandoned their homes fleeing from unrests and numerous villages have been depopulated altogether, al-Pasha said.

He called all humanitarian organizations to join the efforts in order to alleviate the suffering of Yemeni people.

IIRO, also International Islamic Relief Organization of Soddy Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. When the oil runs out the rest of the world is going to kick sand in their national face...
(IIROSA), is a charity based in Saudi Arabia. It is a member of the Conference of Non-Governmental Organizations (conference of NGOs), where it serves on the board. The IIRO is included in a list of some of the UNHCR's major NGO partners.

It is an affiliate of the Mohammedan World League (MWL). It is a member of the International Islamic Council for Da'wa and Relief (IICDR), has observer status at Organization of the Islamic Conference
OIC is an international organisation with a permanent delegation to the UN, with 57 member states. It represents all countries with substantial Moslem populations (as opposed to the Arab League, which excludes members not of the Master Race) except those which member countries block from joining. These include India, which has more Mohammedans than does Pakistain, whose membership is vetoed by Pakistain...
(OIC), consultative status at United Nations
...An organization originally established to war on dictatorships which was promptly infiltrated by dictatorships and is now held in thrall to dictatorships...
Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and links to Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) among many others.
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Africa Horn
King starts fundraiser for Somali famine victims
2011-08-21
JEDDAH: Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has ordered a national fundraising campaign to alleviate the suffering of Somalis who have been hit by drought and famine. The campaign will be launched Monday.
"Your Enormity! The Turks are giving money away in Somalia!"
"What's that?"
"It's a useless piece of land in Africa but that's not the point. The Turks are meddling in our sphere of influence!"
"Well then, there's not a moment to lose. Write a check and sign it in my name!"
In a statement issued Saturday, King Abdullah urged Saudis to donate generously for the benefit of their Somali brethren. He quoted a number of Qur'anic verses that encourage Muslims to spend their money in the way of God.

"Inspired by these Qur'anic verses and moved by the sense of responsibility toward our brethren in Somalia ... King Abdullah has instructed that Monday, Aug. 22, will be the beginning of the fundraiser," a Royal Court announcement said.

King Abdullah reminded his people of a Qur'anic verse that says: "Then shall anyone who has done an atom's weight of good, see it." Another Qur'anic verse said those who do a good work will receive a better reward.

King Abdullah also said the land of the two holy mosques is the best place to start this charitable campaign.

A number of Saudi-based organizations including the Islamic Development Bank, the International Islamic Relief Organization of Saudi Arabia and the World Assembly of Muslim Youth have already sent relief supplies to Somalia.
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Arabia
Charities unjustly associated with terrorism: IIROSA chief
2011-05-02
[Arab News] Adnan Khalil Basha, secretary-general of the International Islamic Relief Organization, Soddy Arabia (IIROSA), said his organization and similar charities have been unjustly associated with terrorism.
But 1/5th of charitable donations are supposed to go to support jihadis. If they aren't associated with terrorism they're doing it wrong... unless we're defining terrorism differently, of course.
Basha said no legal ruling has been made against his organization and other Islamic charities. He was speaking at a presser on Sunday at the IIROSA headquarters in Jeddah to announce its sixth General Assembly meeting. The meeting is to be held on Thursday under the chairmanship of Abdullah bin Abdul Mohsin Al-Turki, secretary-general of the Mohammedan World League.

Basha said IIROSA has been working to combat poverty, illiteracy and ignorance that leads to extremism and then terrorism.

He added that although IIROSA faces difficulties transferring money for projects abroad, the organization expects to overcome these obstacles with the support of the Saudi government.

"These challenges have helped the charity reconsider itself, become organized and work on delivering quality services," he said.

Basha said work is under way to bring all charity organizations under an umbrella body, something that is being carried out with the support of the Organization of the Islamic Conference.
OIC is an international organisation with a permanent delegation to the UN, with 57 member states. It represents all countries with substantial Moslem populations (as opposed to the Arab League, which excludes members not of the Master Race) except those which member countries block from joining. These include India, which has more Mohammedans than does Pakistain, whose membership is vetoed by Pakistain...

A number of government ministers and eminent Islamic scholars and renowned personalities from the Kingdom and other countries, such as Morocco, Yemen, Thailand, Nigeria, India, Kenya, Uganda and Sudan, will attend the General Assembly meeting to discuss a host of issues related to charity work.

Participants will present suggestions and ideas to upgrade the organization's work and boost its various activities to cope with the requirements of the contemporary age and keep pace with new developments in humanitarian work.

The event will also include a seminar to highlight charity work and a function to honor supportive participants of both genders.

Basha explained that at the local level, IIROSA gave SR10.8 million in cash and food baskets, clothes and other gifts to 33,752 people across the Kingdom. He added that last year IIROSA helped some 2.9 million people in 58 countries, sponsored 29,296 orphans in 21 Asian, African and European countries, and administered 30 orphanages.

The secretary-general also revealed that the organization last year implemented 47 health projects. In the field of education, IIROSA is sponsoring 39 educational institutions and programs in addition to four vocational centers to benefit 39,244 male and female students.

IIROSA last year launched six new real estate endowment projects consisting of residential towers in Makkah at a cost of SR500 million. Proceeds from the projects would be used to finance the activities of the organization's various departments. The projects generate annual revenue of SR45 million.
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Arabia
Charges against IIROSA a bunch of lies, says Al-Turki
2010-09-30
[Arab News] The International Islamic Relief Organization Saudi Arabia (IIROSA) has stepped up efforts with the help of US attorneys to clear its name in the highly-publicized terror-funding case filed by the families of people who died in the 9/11 attacks.

This was disclosed by Abdullah Al-Turki, chairman of the IIROSA's board of directors who is also secretary-general of the Makkah-based Mohammedan World League (MWL), and Adnan Khalil Basha, IIROSA's secretary-general, in separate interviews.

Al-Turki and Basha both made their comments on the sidelines of a reception hosted by the MWL for foreign diplomats at the Cultural Palace in Riyadh's Diplomatic Quarter. The event was attended by a large number of Saudi officials and foreign diplomats. It also included a visual presentation explaining the role and activities of the MWL and the IIROSA.

"We are dedicated to humanitarian activities to support the needy and have been closely working with major local, international and UN aid agencies ... Our operations are transparent ... we are working in daylight," said Al-Turki who referred to the charges as a "bunch of lies."

He added that truth would eventually prevail as is evident from the fact that US courts have already cleared some Islamic charities. The now-defunct Al-Haramain Foundation, which was based in Riyadh, was acquitted along with several Saudi aid organizations and philanthropists by a New York court earlier this month.

Basha said the IIROSA has not been acquitted and that "only two of its operations -- the Philippines and Indonesian branches -- have been falsely accused of involvement in terror funding."

These two branches were identified as "Specially Designated Global Terrorist" entities by the US Treasury Department, a move that empowers US agencies and cooperating global agencies to freeze the organization's assets.

The secretary-general denied that IIROSA has been involved in terrorist activities, adding that the case against IIROSA has been in court for nine years.

Basha said the charity has signed an agreement with the Paleostinian Authority to open a chapter there that will mainly focus on social welfare programs like sponsoring orphans and distributing small loans among families. "We are waiting for the green light from the Paleostinians," he said, adding that the branch should be operational by the end of the year.

He also said that the charity has been helping Paleostinians through the United Nations, aka the Oyster Bay Chowder and Marching Society Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) and other international aid agencies. The UNRWA's general commissioner, Peter Ford, met Basha at his office in Jeddah early this year and appreciated IIROSA's concern for Paleostinian people.

"We are currently sponsoring some 19,000 orphans worldwide ... and have set up 31 academic institutions including schools in different countries where enrollment exceeds 30,000 students," he said, adding that the IIROSA has a presence in 32 countries.

The charity is a MWL-affiliate created by a royal decree on Jan. 29, 1979. It is a member of the International Islamic Council for Dawa and Relief (IICDR) and holds an observer status at the OIC.
Link


Home Front: WoT
Suing terror's government-backed funders
2010-07-18
By Adam Brodsky

American victims of terrorism can sue their own government for damages -- but not, generally, foreign regimes or officials. It's a ludicrous approach to the War on Terror. Weren't we supposed to be using every tool at our disposal to fight the bad guys?

On Wednesday, a Senate committee began considering a bill to change things. The Justice Against Sponsors of Terrorism Act would give victims a clear green light to go after terrorists' state-linked enablers -- that is, any regime, official or group that offers them "material support or resources." About time, no?

The bill is a response to a 2008 US Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruling that tossed out a case brought on behalf of thousands of 9/11 victims, their families, insurers and even the Port Authority. Plaintiffs had accused Saudi Arabia, four of its princes and other officials of funding groups that, in turn, provided financial help to al Qaeda, pre-9/11. Their lawyers collected mountains of evidence linking the Saudis to the terror groups.

Treasury documents, for example, cited a key Saudi charity, the International Islamic Relief Organization, that was heavily backed by Saudi royals and that showed "support for terrorist organizations" through at least 2006. And in a sworn statement, an Afghan witness reported watching a Taliban leader in 1998 take some $267 million from someone representing Saudi Prince Turki al-Faisal. Yet none of the evidence made it to court -- because the judges found that the Saudis are shielded by federal rules of immunity for sovereign states.

National governments have maintained such rules for centuries, under the rationale: You don't let folks sue us in your courts, and we won't let them sue you in ours. But while that may work for governments, it clearly hasn't worked so well for the folks governments represent -- which is why many countries have carved out exceptions.

In America, for instance, Congress has allowed damages for "commercial" and other activities. In 1996, it stripped blanket immunity from any regime on the State Department's terror list. But that's led to a patchwork of exceptions and conflicting rulings -- a mess worsened by the fact that the federal executive branch (mainly the State Department) fiercely resists such efforts to seek justice, as of course do the accused states. All of which has created a legal nightmare for those looking to collect -- and for those seeking to deter terror-enablers.

At Wednesday's hearing, Richard Klingler, a lawyer who represented the victims in the Saudi case, noted that only "a handful of states, not including Saudi Arabia," are designated terror sponsors. Thus, he said, under the Second Circuit's approach, "a US citizen can sue a foreign state for harm unintentionally caused by a car crash," but "almost every foreign state that might seek to harm Americans within our borders, through acts of terror or otherwise" is shielded. Terrific.

Feel free, though, to sue a government agency in America: A few years back, the Port Authority -- which, recall, was barred from suing in the case against the Saudis -- was found 68 percent liable in the '93 World Trade Center bombing (more than twice as much as the terrorists themselves).

OK, a court fight won't win the terror war. Letting folks sue (supposed) allies like Saudi Arabia triggers migraines for State. And, yes, other countries may step up suits against us in their courts. But c'mon: Other nations follow "international law" mostly when it suits them. Many that claim immunity are only too eager to subject officials from countries like America and Israel to criminal charges, never mind civil claims. Tell me again why we're protecting them?

Today, Saudi Arabia says al Qaeda is its sworn enemy, and, indeed, it has hunted down anti-Saudi jihadi terrorists. But it's spent billions upon billions pushing the extremist Wahhabi version of Islam that spawned jihadi terror -- and poured money into groups that back violent Islamists. And it's never paid a price for 9/11.

We fight terrorists with our hands tied -- following strict rules of engagement while they slaughter innocents, torture and behead. Some may see it as the noble course -- but it's sure not the smartest.
Link


Home Front: WoT
Saudi Charity Designated As Terrorist Reopens Office In U.S.
2010-03-17
The International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO), a Saudi charity whose Indonesian and Philippine offices have been designated by the US. Treasury in connection with the financing of Al Qaeda, has registered a new office in the United States. According to Florida State records, the IIRO (U.S.A.) Inc. was registered as a non-profit Florida corporation in Hialeah, Florida on April 28, 2009. After being required by regulators to provide a street address rather than a PO Box, the office address for IIRO USA appears now to be located in a shopping mall and is likely some kind of mail drop. The Florida records identify the IIRO President as Adnan Khalil Basha who is the long-serving IIRO Secretary-General in Saudi Arabia and the IIRO U.S.A. registration document states that it is “intended, to be the US chapter of the International Islamic Relief Organization.'

Also: Further Muslim Brotherhood Connections Of The IIRO
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Southeast Asia
Meet the new leader of Abu Sayyaf
2008-10-03
The Abu Sayyaf Group (ASG) has a new leader: Ustadz Yasser Igasan. According to a reliable Army Commander, Igasan is a religious scholar, not a warrior. Sulu Representative Yusof Jikiri said he had heard Igasan was "very spiritual," but he also noted Igasan was a Tausog, an ethnic group known as fierce fighters.

Muhammad Jamal Khalifa, al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden's brother-in-law, established Darul Imam Shafin in 1988. Khalifa's International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO) funded the religious school.
When the news first leaked that ASG commanders had met to choose a new leader, not much was known about Igasan. Since then, a more complete portrait has emerged. Igasan, in his 40s, was among the original members of ASG, along with its founder, Ustadz Abdurajak Abubakar Janjalani. In 1993, Igasan was a classmate of Abdurajak's brother, Khaddafy Janjalani, at Darul Imam Shafin, an Islamic institution in Marawi City. Muhammad Jamal Khalifa, al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden's brother-in-law, established Darul Imam Shafin in 1988. Khalifa's International Islamic Relief Organization>International Islamic Relief Organization (IIRO) funded the religious school. The IIRO ostensibly was engaged in charity work. Investigators say Khalifa was funneling funds to terrorists and supporting secessionist movements in the southern Philippines. He was ASG's link to al-Qaeda. The Philippine Anti-Money Laundering Council has since frozen IIRO accounts.

As a teenager, Igasan reportedly traveled to Afghanistan to fight the then-Soviet army. How involved Igasan was in any fighting is unclear. The Arabs of al-Qaeda and their Taliban allies regarded Southeast Asian Muslims as not real Muslims. They often gave them lesser duties in camp. Igasan met Janjalani in Afghanistan, and the two talked about a separate Islamic state in the Philippines. When they returned home, they cooperated in establishing the Abu Sayyaf Group. Igasan was in the first ASG camp in Basilan-Camp Al-Madinah. He was there when marines overran the camp. Igasan also was with the Abu Sayyaf guerrillas who raided the town of Ipil in 1995, killing more than 50 people. He reportedly was wounded during the army's pursuit operation.

In 1998, Janjalani's death left ASG with three choices for a new leader or emir: Igasan, Khadaffy Janjalani and Radulan Sahiron. The election quickly became a choice between Igasan and Khadaffy. Those who favored Igasan noted that although he and Khadaffy were fellow students at Darul Imam Shafi, it was Igasan that Khalifa had appointed "mushrif"-top of the class. Igasan subsequently became head of Quranic Studies for the IIRO. Igasan also was Khadaffy's senior by three years and thus had three years more field experience. Igasan's supporters believed he had religious credentials almost as good as those of the elder Janjalani. In the end, however, the field commanders threw their support behind Khaddafy, the dead emir's brother.

By the late 1990s, Igasan had left the Philippines for further Islamic studies in Libya and Syria.
By the late 1990s, Igasan had left the Philippines for further Islamic studies in Libya and Syria. He took a lesser role in ASG after Khaddafy's election and left the country again in 2001. This time, he traveled to Saudi Arabia as an overseas Filipino worker, but it was a cover for his real activities. Igasan made contact with Abu Abdurahman, who was involved with al-Qaeda in Afghanistan. Igasan began to funnel money from jihadist supporters in Saudi Arabia to Abu Sayyaf. He also might have facilitated the travel of two unidentified militants from Yemen, who were in Basilan with ASG. They left for Mindanao with Khadaffy and his second-in-command, Abu Solaiman. Hostages confirmed the unidentified Yemenis were present when the militants celebrated the September 2001 attacks in the United States.

ASG commanders might have supported Igasan's election because of his foreign contacts. They badly need funding, and Igasan's past activities provide the guerrillas with legitimacy as jihadists rather than common criminals. Igasan's next move likely will be to target Westerners in kidnappings for ransom, particularly foreign aid workers, businessmen and tourists. The abductions also can be a tactic to persuade foreign militants that Abu Sayyaf is part of the global jihad.

Igasan's religious credentials make him an equal religious authority with the Muslim religious scholars who have issued fatwas, or religious edicts, condemning ASG. His background also could curry favor with Ustadz Habier Malik, a renegade member of the Moro National Liberation Front who withdrew from a peace agreement with the government. In addition, Igasan as leader would make Abu Sayyaf more appealing to the regional Jemaah Islamiyah terrorist group.

Sources inside the Moro Islamic Liberation Front discount all the speculation about Igasan. They say ASG has adopted the loose "inverted pyramid system of leadership" favored by al-Qaeda. Such a leadership style allows individual commanders autonomy to protect the secrecy of their operations. It means that Igasan would function as a spiritual guide rather than operational planner.
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Fifth Column
The Great Al-Qaeda "Patriot"
2007-04-09
By Paul Sperry

A man identified as "Esam Omesh" spoke just before Cindy Sheehan at last month's antiwar rally that Sheehan headlined in Washington.

Following chants of "Impeach Bush!" from shivering protesters, Omesh took the podium and exhorted "brothers and sisters" to condemn Bush for the deaths of "more than 650,000 Iraqi lives." He demanded the White House "pull our troops out of Iraq now" and "end the war today."

The speaker counted himself among the "great American patriots" who braved the cold to march on Washington and protest the war that day.

While there may have been legitimate voices there, this speaker decidedly was not one of them. Not because he's Muslim, but because he's an Islamist tied to an al-Qaida fund raiser and the spiritual adviser to the 9/11 hijackers.

Turns out it his real name is Esam S. Omeish, and he runs a nonprofit group in Washington called the Muslim American Society, which the FBI believes is the U.S. branch of the dangerous Muslim Brotherhood, a worldwide jihadist movement that operates like the mafia. The secret Islamist society counts Osama bin Laden, Ayman al-Zawahri, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed and blind sheik Omar Abdel Rahman among its members. Its motto: "The Quran is our constitution, the prophet is our guide; Death for the glory of Allah is our greatest ambition."

His office is right next door to the old office of one of Al-Qaida's top fund raisers in America, Abdurahman Alamoudi, before he was jailed a few years ago. And it's located in the same Alexandria, Va., business park as the former office of Osama bin Laden's nephew, before he hightailed it back to Saudi Arabia after 9/11.

"Omesh" is not the legal spelling of his name. He may spell it that way for the media, but that's not how it's listed in court documents I've examined. The correct spelling is Omeish with an "i." Perhaps he leaves it out to avoid links to his brother, Mohamed S. Omeish.

As I first reported in my book, "Infiltration: How Muslim Spies and Subversives Have Penetrated Washington," Mohamed Omeish headed the U.S. branch of one of bin Laden's favorite Saudi charities, the International Islamic Relief Organization, which was raided after 9/11. Tax records I've obtained show Omeish shared an office with Alamoudi, the convicted al-Qaida-tied terrorist and godfather of the Muslim mafia in America. This is the same "moderate" Muslim leader who federal prosecutors caught on tape complaining bin Laden hadn't killed enough Americans.

It gets worse. Esam S. Omeish also sits on the board of the 9/11-tied mosque in Washington that helped the hijackers get licenses and housing, and whose imam prepared them for martyrdom operations in private closed-door sessions. Omeish personally hired the imam, Anwar Aulaqi, who fled the country on a Saudi jet about a year after 9/11 (the FBI now wants another crack at questioning him).

Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center, which tax records show has received large donations from the Islamic Relief Organization, is a Muslim Brotherhood bastion. Another former imam and current prayer leader, for example, is an admitted Brotherhood member from the Sudan. The mosque's deed was signed by an Alamoudi crony who has admitted participating in the Brotherhood's "Ikhwan" movement in America.

Dar al-Hijrah is a turnstile for terrorists and terror suspects. A prayer leader, Sheikh Mohammed al-Hanooti, was named as an unindicted co-conspirator in the first World Trade Center bombing. Other dubious mosque members have included: Alamoudi, Abdullah bin Laden, Osama's nephew; Hamas leader and fugitive Mousa Abu Marzook and his partners Ismail Elbarasse and Abdelhaleem Ashqar, who was convicted of obstruction of justice in February; convicted Virginia Jihad Network leader Randall "Ismail" Royer, a former CAIR official; and Ahmed Omar Abu Ali, an al-Qaida operative recently convicted of plotting to assassinate President Bush.

Leaders of the mosque rallied around Ali, calling the trial a Zionist "witch hunt," even after it became obvious he was guilty.

What's more, the phone number to the mosque was found in the German apartment of Ramzi bin al-Shibh, roommate of 9/11 ringleader Mohamed Atta. Atta's deputy "emir" in the "raid" on America, Nawaf al-Hazmi, worshipped at Dar al-Hijrah, along with the pilot who crashed the plane into the Pentagon.

Back to mosque leader Esam Omeish, the "American patriot." Court records I've obtained show he put his home up for bond collateral in 2004 to help spring from jail a terrorist suspect who was caught allegedly casing the Chesapeake bridge for attack. His dubious pal Ismail Elbarasse is a founding member of Dar al-Hijrah.

Omeish's house is just down the road from the mosque in Falls Church, Va., and just a few blocks in the other direction from the Islamist business park in Alexandria. One of Omeish's neighbors on his cul-de-sac is the former bookkeeper for terror banker Soliman Biheiri. He started an Islamic investment bank that included Hamas leader Marzook and Abdullah bin Laden as major investors. Biheiri, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood, was recently convicted of lying about his connections to Marzook in an investigation into his terrorist ties.

It's one big happy Islamist family in Omeish's neck of the woods.

This is who is rallying opposition to the war. Omeish may claim to be an "American patriot," but even Cindy Sheehan should know better. The people she's consorting with would not have shed a tear had her son been beheaded in Iraq.
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Southeast Asia
Editorial: IIRO Funds
2006-12-14
THE recent freezing of the Saudi-based International Islamic Relief Organization’s bank account in the Philippines by the order of a court on the request of the Philippine Anti-Money Laundering Council will do much harm to the thousands of Filipinos in Mindanao who benefit from the IIRO’s charitable work. The organization operates an orphanage in Mindanao, gives educational scholarships to hundreds of Filipino Muslims, has helped young Filipinos get married and has paid for the construction of scores of mosques there.
Why doesn't that thought comfort me?
Every year the IIRO provides at least 300 scholarships to local students, paying for them to study in Manila, Cebu and Cagayan de Oro. Not only does it pay their tuition but it also pays for their transportation from their hometowns to their points of study and in addition gives them a monthly stipend to pay for food and accommodation. “Many students are going to howl if their scholarships are stopped,” said a former Filipino scholarship holder to Arab News in an interview.
Bet they're gonna seethe, too...
The IIRO’s secretary-general, Adnan Khalil Basha, has vigorously denied allegations that any of its funds have gone to help terrorist groups in the Philippines. He claims the freezing of the account is part of a concerted effort by some in the West to stop all Islamic relief efforts. And he may be right. In the aftermath of the Al-Qaeda Sept. 11, 2001 attacks on New York and the Pentagon, the United States has insisted that nations around the globe implement strict monitoring of all international money transfers.

In order to dispel any suspicions about how it uses its funds, the IIRO has strict internal policies that allow it to deposit money abroad only into accredited bank accounts that it maintains in countries where it operates. Not only that, but it employs a strict accounting procedure in which monthly financial reports document and track how the money was spent and who received it.

It is surely unfair for the Anti-Money Laundering Council to freeze the IIRO account merely because of American suspicions. It is perhaps telling that the freeze order issued is for 28 days only — which perhaps indicates that Manila is not convinced of the US accusation that the IIRO is using its funds to support the terrorist Abu Sayyaf Group and Jemaah Islamiyah.

The Philippine government should present any hard evidence that it has against the IIRO, or else unfreeze their account. The Philippines is not a banana republic and, as such, should show the world that it is not at the beck and call of the United States. Manila has many strategic interests in the Middle East and Saudi Arabia, not least of all nearly one million OFWs working in the Kingdom. They make real contributions to the country’s economy and this could be damaged if the IIRO is continually accused of something it is not guilty of. The account should be unfrozen immediately as a show of good will. The millions of riyals that the IIRO has spent in the Philippines have benefited Filipinos and no one else. It would be a shame to see that aid squandered just because of some misplaced and probably groundless suspicion originating in Washington.
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