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Politics : Foreign Policy Discussion Thread -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Neocon who wrote (3752)	2/11/2003 8:53:54 AM
From: lorne	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 15987

Neocon. America has welcomed peoples from all races all religions from all cultures to their home land where they could enjoy freedom of speech, freedom of religion, financial assistant until they can earn a living etc. etc. all the freedoms that Americans have were offered to newcomers and here is the thanks that America gets from islam fanatics and their supporters for the trust that was placed with them. Charity Head Admits Funding Fighters, Not Al Qaeda Mon February 10, 2003 11:53 AM ET CHICAGO (Reuters) - The head of a U.S.-based Muslim charity, who was originally charged with funding al Qaeda, on Monday pleaded guilty only to funneling money to Muslim fighters in Chechnya and Bosnia after reaching a deal with prosecutors. Syrian-born Enaam Arnaout, 41, had been accused of passing millions of dollars in donations to Osama bin Laden's al Qaeda network, but his guilty plea entered in federal court involved misleading donors by sending money to fighters in Chechnya and Bosnia. "This plea agreement shows that this defendant and this charity had nothing to do with al Qaeda or Osama bin Laden," said Joseph Duffy the lawyer for Arnaout, who heads the Benevolence International Foundation. In pleading guilty before U.S. District Court judge Suzanne Conlon to racketeering, conspiracy and multiple acts of mail and wire fraud, Arnaout accepted that he could be sentenced to up to 20 years in prison and fined up to $250,000. The federal indictment charged that Arnaout helped fund Muslim fighters in Bosnia to buy boots, uniforms and an ambulance. Duffy said one factor in deciding to make the plea was whether, if the case went to trial, it would be possible to find an impartial jury in a case involving terrorism and an Arab American. Arnaout, who has been in custody since April, was charged with commingling millions of dollars in contributions to his charity in order to hide the true purpose of the fundraising. U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft traveled to Chicago last year to announce the charges, including the link with al Qaeda. The original seven-count indictment described alleged links between Arnaout and a wide range of Muslim militants including bin Laden, whose al Qaeda network U.S. authorities believe was behind the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks in New York and Washington. He originally faced a possible 90 years in prison without chance of parole. His charity's suburban Chicago headquarters was raided and its assets frozen in December 2001. In January some of the largest U.S. corporations were found to have made donations to Benevolence International through matching contributions made by their employees before Arnaout was indicted last year. Prosecutors alleged that the charity exploited the Islamic principle of giving, called zakat, victimizing donors who did not know where at least some of their money was going. reuters.com