A court in Pakistan has ordered the authorities to re-open the offices of the Al-Rashid Trust, according to a report on the Pakistani Aaj News television channel. The Al-Rashid Trust is on the United States and United Nations lists of terror organisations and the Pakistani authorities had shut down 28 of its offices in several cities in February and prohibited it from collecting funds. The court in the southern port city of Karachi ruled in favour of the Al-Rashid Trust after the authorities failed to produce the official orders barring the activities of the organisation. The court also restored the trust's bank accounts in Pakistan that were frozen more than five years ago.
The Al-Rashid Trust was active in the relief efforts in Pakistan Kashmir after the 2005 earthquake, but it was also said to have backed the Taliban in Afghanistan. The trust was also controversial for its direct links with the Taliban even after the collapse of the regime in late 2001. It was also implicated in previous bomb blasts in Karachi. The group has always denied these allegations and said that it is only involved in charity activities.