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Bush Freezes Assets of U.S.-Based Palestinian Relief Organization
By Neveen A. Salem
WASHINGTON, Dec. 4 (IslamOnline) - President George W. Bush announced Tuesday that he is freezing the assets of a top U.S.-based Islamic non-governmental organization, the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, and two overseas financial groups charged with allegedly funneling funds to the Palestinian resistance group Hamas.
Bush, who announced the move at 11:00 a.m. (1600 GMT), has already frozen the assets of dozens of organizations and individuals (totaling $61 million of alleged Al-Qaeda funds) as part of his "war on terrorism". The latest freeze is believed to be a result of the bombings in Jerusalem and Haifa this past weekend, which killed dozens of Israelis and were claimed by the Islamic Resistance Movement, or Hamas.
Bush said federal agents had raided offices of the Richardson, Texas-based Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development in Texas, California, Illinois and New Jersey.
The President also ordered frozen the assets of a bank and holding company - Al Aqsa International Bank, and the Beit El-Mal Holdings Company, an investment group - alleging that they are linked to Hamas. Both the bank and the investment group are based in the Palestinian territories.
"The message is this: those who do business with terror will do no business with the United States - or anywhere else the United States can reach," Bush said in the White House Rose Garden. "The net is closing. Today, it just got tighter," Bush continued.
Hamas has been placed on the U.S. State Department list of alleged "terrorist" groups.
Officials of The Holy Land Foundation told the New York Times that the charity is not a front for Hamas. They asserted that their group has not tried to assist Hamas by providing assistance to the families of so-called Palestinian "suicide bombers".
"Our foundation helps people in need," Dalal Mohammed, the foundation's spokeswoman told the newspaper. "We don't do a test on whether families are in a criminal situation."
"The Holy Land Foundation denies allegations that it provided financial support to terrorist groups or individuals. The foundation is a humanitarian organization that has worked to serve the needy, both home and abroad, since 1989," the foundation said in a letter released today.
"We feel the Holy Land Foundation had been unfairly targeted in a smear campaign to undermine Muslims and the institutions that serve them.
"The decision by the U.S. government to seize the charitable donations of Muslims during the holy month of Ramadan is an affront to millions of American Muslims who entrust charities like ours in fulfilling their religious obligations.
"We are confident that the Holy Land Foundation will eventually be cleared of these false allegations," the letter concluded.
The Holy Land Foundation had reportedly raised $13 million in 2000 to help Palestinians crippled by the effects of Israel's continuing military occupation and devastating economic sanctions, both of which have been recently criticized by the international community, including the U.S. - Israel's staunchest ally.
The foundation's mission statement asserts that the duty of Holy Land is "to find and implement practical solutions for human suffering through humanitarian programs that impact the lives of the disadvantaged, disinherited, and displaced peoples suffering from man-made and natural disasters. Our area of focus is with the Palestinian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine."
"We will carry out our mission with impartiality and with the elemental precepts of humanity whereby all people are created equal and poses certain inalienable rights," Holy Land's mission statement adds. "The right to life with dignity, shelter, food, health care, and education. We will maintain a commitment to maximum efficiency and financial accountability in every aspect of our work."
The foundation also stated that it has worked toward helping people in Jordan, Lebanon, and Palestine as well as in Bosnia, Kosovo and Turkey.
Holy Land further added that it has responded to disasters in the United States, including directly engaging in relief efforts during the floods in Iowa, tornadoes in Oklahoma and Texas, and in the devastation caused by the 1995 bombing of the Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
Mohammed told the Times that the foundation, which also has offices in Newark, New Jersey and Gaza, has had no recent contact with the Bush Administration.
The foundation's Texas offices remained closed today after being raided by Federal agents.
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