Moving to quell an embarrassing scandal, Saudi Arabian authorities recently detained for questioning one of their own diplomats amid suspicions that he may have funneled hundreds of thousands of dollars out of official Saudi accounts to Al Qaeda operatives in Europe. The unfolding probe into the activities of Muhammad J. Fakihi, who until recently served as acting chief of the Islamic Affairs section of the Saudi Embassy in Berlin, is being watched closely in Washington as a test of how aggressively the Saudi government is willing to root out Osama bin Laden loyalists within its own ranks.
| I'd guess Muhammad J. is toast. The lights are on, so it's time to scurry and hope they go out again soon... |
Interrogated by Saudi investigators, Fakihi has acknowledged he sympathized with bin Laden and that he steered embassy funds to charities and mosques suggested by Qaeda loyalists. âHe confessed that he was told by close friends of [bin Laden] where to give the money,â says one Saudi source familiar with the probe. Another U.S. source familiar with the investigation said Fakihi was âmore than just a sympathizer of bin Laden. He was organizationally involvedâ with bin Ladenâs network.
| 'Nother words, he was a player, not just applauding from the audience... |
Officials say Saudi authorities are also reviewing some $800,000 in funds that were doled out by the Islamic Affairs department after Fakihi assumed control more than two years ago. Officials are trying to determine whether some of those funds may have wound up financing terrorist activities. But a Saudi official told NEWSWEEK that neither German nor U.S. officials had turned over any incriminating evidence against Fakihi, and so far no improprieties have been found.
| "No, no! Certainly not! The money was budgeted to be spent on good, Islamist causes. Who's to say it wouldn't have gone to the same recipients even without the terrorists direction?" |
Concerns about Fakihi first surfaced late last year when German investigators disclosed that Fakihiâs business card had been found in the Hamburg apartment of a Moroccan student, Mounir el-Motassadeq, who has since been convicted of aiding and abetting the 9-11 attacks. El-Motassadeq had traveled to a Qaeda training camp in Afghanistan in the spring of 2000 and had extensive dealings with members of the Hamburg cell. (He managed one 9-11 hijackerâs bank account and was a witness to the bizarre will signed by hijacker leader Muhammad Atta.) But the Saudi Embassy in Germany never responded to a formal request from prosecutors to explain the presence of the business card or an alleged meeting between Fakihi and el-Motassadeq in Berlin shortly before the terroristâs arrest in November 2001.
"'Splain yourself, Abdullah!"
"Mahmoud, did you hear something?"
"No, Effendi! I heard nothing!" |
The case took a new twist when German police turned up evidence that Fakihi had recently met at a Berlin mosque with the alleged ringleader of another Qaeda cell. Four days after German officials again confronted the Saudi Embassy about him in March, Fakihi flew back to Saudi Arabia, where he was detained for questioning.
| Welcome home, Mohammad J. You're under arrest!" |
The inquiry continues, and one key issue, sources say, is whether other government officialsâespecially within the Ministry of Islamic Affairsâwere aware of his activities. âThis is a serious matter,â says one Bush administration official. |