(New York Times) Timothy L. O'Brien - The Treasury Department and other federal agencies say that Saudi "Account 98" funds - the designation Saudi regulators use for money destined for Palestinian charitable works - may be a conduit for terrorist financing. Prince Nayef bin Abdel Aziz, a brother of King Fahd, is the Saudi interior minister and supervises the regulation of charities and fund-raising efforts that generate money deposited into Account 98 coffers. The prince also oversees the Saudi Committee for the Support of Al Quds Intifada, which provides aid to the families of Palestinian suicide bombers. According to Arab News, a Saudi daily, a single telethon last year raised $112 million for Al Quds. Saudi Arabia "needs to open to close outside scrutiny the opaque legal and regulatory regime that governs its financial system and its charities," says Lee Wolosky, a former director for transnational threats with the National Security Council and co-author of a recent Council on Foreign Relations report in which the Saudis were accused of turning "a blind eye" to terrorist financing.
2003-06-24 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive