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| Europe |
| Al-Qaeda funding operation sent cash through lots o' places |
| 2006-06-05 |
| The founder of a Muslim firm, who was accused of sending money to al Qaeda through Malta and Switzerland to bank branches in the Bahamas, is suing the Swiss government for financial losses incurred resulting from a three and a half year investigation that was dropped exactly one year ago, NZZ online reported. The Swiss government began investigating Youssef Nada's firm, which was set up to provide banking services in Europe according to Islamic principles (which forbids the paying of interest), shortly after the September 11 attacks. The US government had said that Nada Management, formerly known as al Taqwa, had helped fund Osama bin Laden's terrorist network. The company was based in Ticino until it was liquidated in December 2001. But Switzerland was forced to drop the case against top officials of the company on July 1, 2005 because they said authorities in the Bahamas had failed to provide essential bank records by a court deadline, NZZ online said. NZZ online also said the prosecutor's office never filed charges or made arrests and company officials have repeatedly denied links to terrorism and accused Swiss authorities of taking part in a US-led anti-Muslim campaign. Although the prosecutor's office removed its block from the bank accounts of the company and its officers, they remain frozen because of UN sanctions targeting those on the US list. In May 2005 the Federal Criminal Court ruled that prosecutors should have given further reasons for the allegations made against Lugano-based Nada Management and its director in 2001. The court also said there was no reason for the prosecutor's office to have taken so long to decide whether to hand the case over to a tribunal. It also criticised prosecutors for claiming late in 2004 that they were about to launch judicial proceedings. Nada confirmed he is suing the Swiss government for "tens of millions of Swiss francs", but would not specify the exact amount. |
| Posted by:Dan Darling |
| #1 Take their damn money and run. Listen to the whining begin. Boorah-hah-hah-hah ! |
| Posted by: SOP35/Rat 2006-06-05 01:30 |