(Washington Post) Douglas Farah - Islamic charities based in Northern Virginia and sponsored by the government of Saudi Arabia invested millions of dollars in a company suspected of funding al Qaeda and the Islamic Resistance Movement, the government alleged for the first time Tuesday. An affidavit made public in federal court in Virginia contends that the Muslim charities gave $3.7 million to BMI Inc., a private Islamic investment company in New Jersey that may have passed the money to terrorist groups, part of a $10 million endowment from unnamed donors in Jiddah, Saudi Arabia. "My investigation demonstrates that BMI and its affiliates may have transferred funds to or for terrorists," said David Kane of the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement in the affidavit. One of BMI's chief investors was Saudi businessman Yasin Qadi, who the U.S. and UN named a "specially designated global terrorist" in October 2001 for his alleged support of both al Qaeda and Hamas. Another major BMI investor, according to court documents, was Hamas leader Mousa Abu Marzook.
2003-08-20 00:00:00Full ArticleBACK Visit the Daily Alert Archive