Central Intelligence Agency

“ Domestic Islamic organizations — and sometimes foreign governments — have accused host governments of attacking legitimate Islamic institutions and intentionally hampering relief efforts. Although some governments have proved willing to act when their own interests were at stake and when legal grounds existed for targeting individual NGO employees or even NGO branch offices, only some measures have proved effective and all have drawbacks. ”

“ A confidential contact reports that the regional director of the organization, Dr. Muhammad Fatih Hasanayn, is the most influential NGO official in Bosnia. He is a major arms supplier to the government, according to clandestine and press reporting, and was forced to relocate his office from Zagreb in 1994 after his weapons smuggling operations were exposed. According to a foreign government service, Hasanayn supports US Muslim extremists in Bosnia. (One NGO in Bosnia that includes extremist US Muslims is Taibah International, which has offices in Zagreb, Split, and Sarajevo.) ”

“ We have information that nearly one third of the Islamic NGOs in the Balkans have facilitated the activities of Islamic groups that engage in terrorism, including the Egyptian Al-Gama'at Al-Islamiyya, Palestinian Hamas, Algerian Groups, and Lebanese Hizballah. ”

“ All of the major and most of the minor Islamic charities are significant players in the former Yugoslavia, particularly in aiding Bosnian Muslims. Their contributions represent a significant proportion of humanitarian aid in Bosnia. According to the US embassy in Riyadh, Saudi nationals alone gave $150 million through Islamic NGOs for aid to Bosnia in 1994. Most of the offices of NGOs active in Bosnia are located in Zagreb, Sarajevo, Zenica, and Tuzla. Their field operations appear to be confined to the Muslim areas of Northeastern and Central Bosnia. ”

“ Most governments have little or no authority over NGOs based on their territory. 3: CONTROL STAFFING: Governments have sometimes exerted greater control over personnel in semiofficial NGOs, particularly when pressured by foreign governments. For example, Saudi Arabia fired the head of the Peshawar, Pakistan branch of the Muslim World League, who was illicitly supplying League documentation and arms to militants in Afghanistan and Tajikistan, after coming under pressure to do so from Egypt, Algeria, and other states. ”

“ Several countries — including Italy, Austria, Albania, Croatia, Macedonia, Pakistan, and Saudi Arabia — have closed the offices of NGOs whose members supported opposition groups, otherwise attacked the government, or conducted certain illegal activities such as arms smuggling. ”

“ We continue to have evidence that even high ranking members of the collecting or monitoring agencies in Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Pakistan — such as the Saudi High Commission - - are involved in illicit activities, including support for terrorists. ”

“ Some countries have continued to allow suspect NGOs to operate while arresting individual members for terrorism or other illegal acts. This tactic, when applied consistently, appears to be the most successful in halting illegal activities within NGOs. ”

“ The main Islamic charities maintain headquarters and raise money in a few regional centers, the most important being in the Arabian Peninsula and Sudan. Smaller organizations — important because of their support to extremist groups — often have headquarters in Europe and offices in North America. ”

“ Efforts by governments to counter terrorist groups' use of NGOs are complicated by domestic and international political concerns, legal constraints, and the size and flexibility of the international extremist network. ”

“ Another foreign government service reported that an Algerian national affiliated with HSO and a senior commander of the mujahedin, also Algerian, were preparing for an unspecified terrorist attack in Europe if Shaykh Umar Abd Al-Rahman, then on trial in New York for complicity in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing, were convicted. ”

“ Many of these organizations also support foreign mujahedin fighters in Bosnia. Coordination councils based in Zagreb and Sarajevo, coordinate the activities of the most important organizations. These councils may function like a similar one established in Peshawar, Pakistan, which organizes arms shipments and aid to military training camps, and provides humanitarian aid to refugees, according to a clandestine source.
A growing body of reporting indicates that some of these charities are being used to aid Islamic extremist groups that engage in terrorism. ”

“ Most measures are one-time-only acts with little follow-up, and oversight of field operations has not increased. Donations from citizen's overseas accounts undoubtedly continue, and smaller NGOs may be backed by powerful interest groups. ”

“ The NGOs' charitable activities include delivery of food, clothing, and medicine; support to orphanages, schools, hospitals, and refugee camps; and housing construction, infrastructure support, and agricultural projects. ”