posted on Feb, 9 2005 @ 03:32 PM
A mosque established and funded by basketball star Hakeem Olajuwon gave more than $80,000 to charities the government later determined to be fronts
for the terror groups al-Qaida and Hamas, according to financial records obtained by The Associated Press.
Olajuwon told the AP he had not known of any links to terrorism when the donations were made, prior to the government's crackdown on the groups, and
would not have given the money if he had known.
Ex-NBA star says he didn't know donations went to groups deemed
fronts for al-Qaida, Hamas
Olajuwon, who became a U.S. citizen in 1993, was known as "The Dream" and won the NBA's Most Valuable Player award in 1994, when he led the Rockets to
the first of back-to-back championships.
The Olajuwon-founded Islamic Da'Wah Center gave more than $60,000 in 2000 and $20,000 in 2002 to the Islamic African Relief Agency, the center's tax
records show. The government shut down the relief agency in October, saying it gave money and other support to Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida.
Associated Press
[Edited on 9/2/05 by TRD]