Bush war causes Iraq to become "fertile ground" for al-qaeda according to UN report.
Iraq Is `Fertile Ground' for Al-Qaeda, UN Report Says (Update1)
Dec. 1 (Bloomberg) -- Iraq has become ``fertile ground'' for al-Qaeda terrorism, including 15 attacks this year that killed 179 U.S. soldiers and international aid workers, according to a United Nations report released today.
The failure of 25 nations -- including Egypt, Indonesia, Libya, North Korea, Somalia and Sudan -- to comply with UN Security Council sanctions against al-Qaeda enables members of the terrorist group to enter Iraq with the arms and money to fight the U.S.-led occupation, the report said.
``It is readily accessible to al-Qaeda followers anxious to take up the battle against the coalition forces,'' said the report by specialists on arms, finance and immigration appointed by the UN to monitor the sanctions. Iraq is ``proving to be an ideal battle ground for followers of Osama bin Laden.''
The second report of the ``Monitoring Group'' created by Security Council resolutions adopted after the terrorist attacks in the U.S. on Sept. 11, 2001, came as Turkish Deputy Prime Minister Abdullatif Sener said police investigations into four recent suicide bombings in Istanbul point to al-Qaeda. U.S. President George W. Bush said Turkey has joined Iraq as a ``front'' in the campaign against such attackers.
``The al-Qaeda ideology has continued to spread, raising the specter of further terrorist attacks,'' the UN report said. It recommends another Security Council resolution containing penalties for failure to implement UN sanctions.
Current measures ``and their incomplete implementation appear unable to stop al-Qaeda, the Taliban and their associates from obtaining whatever weapons and explosives they need, where and whenever they need them,'' said the report.
`A Matter of Time'
Syrian and Yemeni officials told UN representatives they can't effectively patrol their borders and that illegal arms, including shoulder-fired missiles, are flowing both to and from Iraq and its neighbors.
It is ``just a matter of time,'' the report said, before al- Qaeda obtains biological and chemical weapons.
The report said only 84 of the 191 UN members submitted mandated reports on steps taken to combat al-Qaeda, and only 272 individuals linked to the group have been placed on the designated terrorist list, while more than 4,000 have been arrested or detained for their alleged involvement. Only 21 of the 84 nations reported freezing al-Qaeda assets.
Of the 107 nations that didn't submit reports, the UN said al-Qaeda is active in at least 25. Those nations have charities that support al-Qaeda and allow arms and terrorists to move freely in and out their borders. Others, such as Jordan and Syria, which border Iraq, have provided insufficient information to the UN.
``Countries are reluctant to provide information concerning their seizures of illegal weapons and explosives believed destined for al-Qaeda,'' the report said.
Charities
Al-Qaeda and the Taliban are continuing to use Muslim charities, including the Saudi Arabia-based International Islamic Relief Organization, to ``obtain, solicit, collect, transfer and distribute considerable sums,'' the report said. Financial activities have shifted to Africa, the Middle East and Southeast Asia.
The Islamic relief group receives most of its money from Saudi sources, while maintaining 36 offices in Africa, 24 in Asia and 10 in Europe. A U.S. investment company, Sana-Bell Inc., was used to transfer money to al-Qaeda from the charity, according to the UN.
The report recommended that the Security Council adopt a resolution creating a charity data bank, clarifying asset freezing requirements and creating penalties for failure to implement UN sanctions.
Chilean Ambassador Heraldo Munoz, chairman of the Security Council's al-Qaeda sanctions committee, said a draft resolution might be introduced later this month, after he and representatives of the 15 council members return from a fact- finding mission to Belgium, Italy, Pakistan and Saudi Arabia.
Last Updated: December 1, 2003 15:12 EST |
