Saudi Arabia is cracking down on charities whose money is funding terrorist organizations, The Washington Post reported Tuesday.
In a report to be released in Washington, the Saudis are to detail a number of steps they have taken since Sept. 11, 2001, to keep better track of charities that the Bush administration, members of Congress and outside analysts believe have been a major source of financing for al Qaeda and other terrorist groups.
The steps include ordering Saudi-based charitable organizations to set up financial control and audit mechanisms; imposing rules and regulations for the charities and creating a government agency to oversee their operations; setting up a new financial intelligence unit to coordinate among banking, law enforcement and intelligence officials; and establishing strict new rules for sending money outside the country. The report, which will be presented at a news conference at Saudi Arabia's embassy, will also detail the number of bank accounts and amount of money potentially tied to terrorists that the Saudi government has frozen since Sept. 11 -- 33 accounts worth $5.6 million.
The total amount of assets frozen by all countries worldwide since the attacks is $113 million, according to the U.S. Treasury Department. (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
