ISLAMIC
CHARITY OFFICIALS GAVE MILLIONS TO AL-QAEDA, SAYS UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
WASHINGTON: When Qatar’s
royal family was looking for advice on charitable giving, it turned to a
well-regarded professor named Abd al-Rahman al-Nu’aymi. The 59 years old
educator had a stellar resume that included extensive fundraising experience
and years of work with international human rights groups.
But one apparent
accomplishment was omitted from the list: According to U.S. officials, Nu’aymi
also was working secretly as a financier for al-Qaeda, funnelling millions of
dollars to the terrorist group’s affiliates in Syria and Iraq even as he led
campaigns in Europe for greater freedoms for Muslims, said a report published
in Washington Post.
Nu’aymi was one of two men
identified by Treasury Department officials last week as major financial
backers of al-Qaeda and its regional chapters across the Middle East. Although
U.S. officials routinely announce steps to disrupt terrorist financing
networks, the individuals named in the latest case are far from ordinary: Both
men have served as advisers to government-backed foundations in Qatar and have
held high-profile positions with international human rights groups.
The second man, a Yemeni,
drew part of his salary from U.N. funds underwritten by U.S. taxpayers.
Their alleged dual roles promoting humanitarian causes and civil rights while simultaneously supporting
extremist groups reflect a growing challenge faced by counter-terrorism
officials attempting to monitor the torrents of cash flowing to Islamist rebel
groups in Syria, current and former U.S. officials say.
“Individuals with one foot
in the legitimate world and another in the realm of terrorist financing provide
al-Qaeda with a cloak of legitimacy,” said Juan Zarate, a former Treasury
official and author of “Treasury’s Wars,” a book that describes U.S. efforts to
penetrate terrorist financial networks.
Zarate said such cases
greatly complicate the “financial diplomacy” involved in attempting to disrupt
terrorist support networks, especially private funding from wealthy Persian
Gulf donors seeking to help Syria’s rebels.
Despite attempts by gulf
states to crack down on jihadist financial networks, former and current U.S.
officials have described a surge in private support for Islamist extremists in
Syria, particularly in Qatar and Kuwait.
The Obama administration has
repeatedly urged both countries to rein in private donations to jihadists,
while acknowledging that new tactics, including the widespread use of Twitter
and social media, make fundraising more difficult to track.
“It is essential for
countries to take proactive steps to disrupt terrorist financing, especially
where al-Qaeda and its affiliates are concerned,” David S. Cohen, the Treasury
Department’s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in
announcing financial constrictions against Nu’aymi and the Yemeni national, Abd
al-Wahhab al-Humayqani.
Cohen said the Obama
administration would continue to work with the Persian Gulf region’s capitals to
“ensure that charitable donations are not used to support violence.”
The administration’s action
last week named both men as “specially designated global terrorists,” a
determination that allows U.S. officials to freeze their financial assets and
bar American citizens and companies from doing business with them.
Treasury Department
documents said both men used their charity work to conceal efforts to raise
millions of dollars for al-Qaeda and other terrorist groups from Syria to the
Horn of Africa.
The naming of the two
officials raised eyebrows in Qatar and Yemen, where supporters viewed the
allegations as politically motivated. Both men have been prominent critics of
U.S. counter-terrorism policies, particularly the use of drone strikes against
terrorism suspects.
Nu’aymi, a Qatar University
professor and former president of the Qatar Football Association, was a
founding member of a prominent charity — the Sheikh Eid bin Mohammad al-Thani
Charitable Foundation — named for a member of the country’s ruling family.
In recent years, Nu’aymi had
gained renown as an international activist, serving as president of Alkarama, a
Geneva-based human rights organization that works closely with the United
Nations and major international activist groups to advocate for Muslims’ civil
rights.
Alkarama lobbies on behalf
of Islamist detainees around the world, and it accuses Western and Arab
governments of suppressing the rights of political groups that promote Islamic
rule for the Middle East. Some of the group’s former clients are linked to
Islamist militias seeking to overthrow Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.
Humayqani is an Alkarama
founding member and one time adviser to Qatar on charitable giving, according
to his résumé. He is a founding member of Yemen’s conservative Rashad Union
party and has served on the country’s National Dialogue Conference, a group
established in the wake of the Arab Spring uprising to advise the government on
political and economic reforms. As a council member, he has sometimes received
a daily stipend from a Yemeni fund underwritten by U.N. financial contributions.
Nu’aymi, in a response
posted on Twitter last week, said the U.S. allegations were a retaliation for
his criticism of American policies, including drone strikes in Yemen and U.S.
support for the recent overthrow of Egypt’s democratically elected government.
He said the U.S. claims about his fundraising work were “far from the truth.”
Humayqani was travelling and
could not be reached for comment. A statement released by his Rashad Union
party condemned what it called “false accusations” by the United States and
urged Yemen’s government to rally to his defense.
The allegations against
Nu’aymi come at a time of increasing U.S. concern about the role of Qatari
individuals and charities in supporting extreme elements within Syria’s rebel
alliance.
One charity, Madid Ahl
al-Sham, was cited by Jabhat al-Nusra in August as one of the preferred
conduits for donations intended for the group, which has pledged loyalty to
al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri.
