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| Terror Networks |
| Saudi charities... |
| 2001-09-29 |
| David B. Ottaway and Dan Morgan Washington Post The Saudi Embassy Web site in Washington says the government has built 210 Islamic centers throughout the world and has taken the initiative to form the International Islamic Relief Organization, among other groups, to serve Muslims inside and outside the Islamic world. These activities, an integral part of Saudi foreign policy, have helped spread the Wahabi strain of Islam and strengthened the royal family's claim to legitimacy at home. But allegations that the Saudi-backed charities have aided terrorists complicate the royal family's efforts to preserve a special relationship with the United States, its principal military shield. In addition to concerns that the charities provide cover for terrorists, the Islamic fundamentalism exported by the Saudi government has helped inspire radical Islamic elements, some western experts say. "They [the terrorists] recruit within these conservative Islamic circles," said Olivier Roy, an Islamic scholar at the National Center for Scientific Research in Paris. Roy expressed concern that the Saudis were losing control of the aid they give for building mosques in dozens of countries. But some IIRO officials say that the Saudi government in fact keeps a tight rein over their activities. For example, Arafat Asahi, the Muslim World League and IIRO director in Canada, said all applications for aid projects go first to the Saudi Embassy and only then are evaluated by the charities. "We are controlled in all our activities and plans by the government of Saudi Arabia," he said, noting that his own salary also is paid by the Saudis. |
| Posted by:Fred Pruitt |