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| U.S. ties Arnaout, bin Laden |
| 2003-01-30 |
| The head of a Muslim charity in Palos Hills was so close to Osama bin Laden that he was allowed to sign letters for the terrorist leader, federal prosecutors allege in new documents unsealed Wednesday. The files show how prosecutors plan to link Bin Laden with Enaam Arnaout, head of the Benevolence International Foundation, when Arnaout stands trial for racketeering, money laundering and providing support to terrorists next month. The documents--released in response to a lawsuit--include government filings chronicling the formation of bin Laden's terrorist group al-Qaida, photographs supposedly showing Arnaout with bin Laden and a list of high-profile contributors like Microsoft. The government charges that while Benevolence claimed to be a charitable organization, it "spent a significant amount of money in support of groups engaged in violence and concealed that fact from the public." BIF got some of its financial support through a "matching gift program," where corporations including Microsoft and Houston-based Compaq matched contributions from employees, the government states. The filings also describe a handwritten list of people referred to within al-Qaida as the "Golden Chain"--wealthy donors to militant Muslim causes. We'd really like to see that list, please? The list was found at Benevolence's Bosnia office, where investigators also discovered "a treasure trove of electronically scanned documents and photographs, including many with the defendant Arnaout," according to government documents. One file was labeled "Tareekh Osama," which means "Osama's History," according to prosecutors. Included in the file is a letter to a former Benevolence leader named Mohamed Loay Bayazid. The letter states that although it is from bin Laden, it is signed by Arnaout, using bin Laden's alias Abu Mahmoud. "He [bin Laden] is far away from me and he authorized me through a communication to sign on his behalf, my apology," Arnaout writes in the letter according to the proffer. Bet he was real proud of that letter. Kind of shoots down the "I didn't know him" argument. One file contains minutes of an Aug. 11, 1988, meeting between Bayazid and bin Laden "regarding the establishment of a new military group," the documents state. Al-Qaida "commenced" on Sept. 10, 1988, with "15 brothers," according to notes from a report in the file. There is no allegation linking Arnaout to either meeting. Arnaout, 40, has been in jail since his arrest last April. His attorneys were not available for comment Wednesday, but they have previously accused the government of prosecuting a case based heavily on circumstantial evidence. Circumstantial evidence has put away many a bad guy. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #2 Several, in fact. He usually used "Abu Abdullah," Abdullah being the kid whose nuptials we carried on the Rantburg Society Page today... |
| Posted by: Fred 2003-01-30 19:39:51 |
| #1 Several, in fact. He usually used "Abu Abdullah," Abdullah being the kid whose nuptials we carried on the Rantburg Society Page today... |
| Posted by: Fred 1/30/2003 7:39:51 PM |