The U.S.Treasury Department has frozen all U.S. bank accounts of an Islamic relief agency today. The organization known as Islamic African Relief
Agency has it's headquarters in Khartoum, Sudan, but also maintains an office in Missouri. The group is accused of directly funding Osama bin Laden
as well as funneling money to the Palestinian group Hamas.
Treasury Designates Global Network, Senior Officials of IARA for Supporting bin Laden,
Others
The Bush administration on Wednesday accused a Sudan-based relief organization and five of its officials of helping finance Osama bin Laden and other
terrorists. The Treasury Department's action means U.S. banks must block any assets found in this country belonging to the Islamic African Relief
Agency and the five designated officials. People in the United States are not allowed to provide money to them.
The government alleged that the overseas branches of the group provided "hundreds of thousands of dollars" to bin Laden in 1999. Treasury also
believes that as early as 2003 the group was responsible for moving money to the Palestinian territories to support terrorist activities and served
"as a conduit to Hamas in one Western European country."
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FBI officials at the Missouri branch were seen carrying out computers and boxes, but refused to comment on their activities saying that the case was
currently sealed. The organization's [/url=http://www.iara-usa.org/]website[/url] was still up today and greets visitors with pictures of children,
and claims to have recently delivered 10 tons of food to the war torn Dufar, Sudan. U.S. citizens are now barred from contributing to this
organization.
[edit on 14-10-2004 by dbates]
