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| UC Berkeley program funded by Saudis with links to terrorism |
| 2003-05-07 |
| EFL UC Berkeley administrators ignored reports yesterday that a campus Middle Eastern studies program has accepted significant funds from groups and individuals linked to terrorism by the US State Department. Tap...tap...tap, no surprise here. The Center for Middle Eastern Studies runs two programs whose stated missions are to increase âunderstanding of Islam and of Muslim peoples and cultures in the United States and around the world.â But those programs are funded by a Saudi businessman and a member of the Saudi royal family who the State Department maintains are responsible for funneling money to groups that sponsor terrorism. Gee, who'd have guessed that terrorist groups and Saudi money would be mentioned in the same story? The centerâs Sultan Program is named for and funded by Sultan bin Abdulaziz al Saud, the second deputy prime minister of Saudi Arabia. Al Saud has been implicated as having a direct hand in the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks and is currently a defendant in the $1 trillion class action lawsuit filed by the families of the attacksâ victims. âAt best, Prince Sultan (al Saud) was grossly negligent in the oversight and administration of charitable funds, knowing they would be used to sponsor international terrorism, but turning a blind eye,â states the brief filed by the victimsâ attorneys. âAt worst, Prince Sultan directly aided and abetted and materially sponsored al Qaeda and international terrorism.â I'll take "What is aided and abetted?" for $200, Alex. Al Saud, also the Saudi minister of defense, chairs the Supreme Council of Islamic Affairs, charged with reviewing and granting aid requests from Islamic organizations. Since Al Saud has administered charitable giving for the kingdom, it has funded organizations the federal government and UN have acknowledged aid and abet terrorism. They include the International Islamic Relief Organization, al-Haramain, Muslim World League and the World Assembly of Muslim Youth. Al Saud was publicly thanked for his contributions to the International Islamic Relief Organization by the organizationâs secretary general just 10 months before the Sept. 11 attacks. That organization has been connected with the funding of al Qaeda, Hamas and Islamic Jihad. It has also been directly linked with the 1993 World Trade Center Bombings, plots to assassinate former President Clinton and the Pope, as well as plans to destroy the Lincoln Tunnel and Brooklyn Bridge. It is headed by Mohammed Khalifa, Osama bin Ladenâs brother-in-law who the federal government has branded a principal leader of global terrorism. University administrators declined to comment on the connections between the centerâs benefactors and terrorism. But the vice chair of the center did acknowledge the programs receive funding from Al Saud and another organization with ties to terrorism. UC Berkeleyâs Center for Middle Eastern Studies also houses the Al-Falah program, whose principal benefactor is Xenel Industries, a Saudi conglomerate. The companyâs CEO is Abdullah Alireza, who is on the executive board of Dar al-Maal-Islami, a bank managed by Osama bin Ladenâs brother, which the UN acknowledges funds terrorist activity. Reports of the connection between the UC Berkeley centerâs funding and terrorism were first broken by the Berkeley Jewish Journal, a new UC Berkeley student magazine. Gottreich attacked the writers of the article, calling them proponents of âthe most extreme form of right-wing Zionism.â But the editor of the Jewish magazine, Robert Enyati, criticized Gottreichâs âname calling,â saying it âvery clearly shows the agenda of the institution.â Gottreich went on to praise the multi-partisan programs promoted by the center, saying its officials are âproud of its record of providing a forum for a wide variety of Middle East-related voices on the UC campus.â "We promote both anti-american and anti-israeli voices." But many prominent professors of the program do not exactly have a strong track record of supporting the United States and Israel. The centerâs chair, for instance, Professor Nezar Al Sayyad has been a vocal opponent of the Iraq war and President Bush. He has told an audience at a campus forum on the war that âwhen the media speaks about the president and his two sons, I no longer know which president they are speaking of.â He also disputed the 2000 election results and said he would âweep for my countryâ while âcondemning the current administration.â And the centerâs Daniel Boyarin, a near eastern studies professor, told The Daily Californian that â(former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud) Barak is an evil man, he is a violent man, a racist and a liar.â Maybe we need some Berkeley trading cards. |
| Posted by:Steve |
| #7 You say that like you're suprised? Actually, sad to say, Beserkly is only one campus of the UC system that is overwhelmingly leftist/anarchist. |
| Posted by: Anonymous Troll 2003-05-07 22:02:45 |
| #6 Doesn't this go under Fifth Column? |
| Posted by: KP 2003-05-07 12:11:23 |
| #5 Thank you Rantburg. Out here in Baghdad By the Bay Area, this has yet to be reported on...noone except the Cal Patriot (who broke the story) and my KSFO talk radio reality fix has carried this. Hey, if it's not reported on, it didn't happen right? ....right? |
| Posted by: Rex Mundi 2003-05-07 11:20:12 |
| #4 When I was a freshman in Berkeley in 1967, we had quite a few Israeli students. When the 67 war broke out, they had their bags packed and were ready to go, but never were called. There was genuine support for Israel then, but now...it is pretty sad. I am glad someone is following the money and exposing these people fronting as scholars who have ruined a once great university. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2003-05-07 10:13:30 |
| #3 'former Israeli Prime Minister Ehud) Barak is an evil man, ... and a liar.â ' What, have these guys been reading Arutz Sheva? |
| Posted by: liberalhawk 2003-05-07 09:11:34 |
| #2 True, I should have filed it under Terror Networks. |
| Posted by: Steve 2003-05-07 08:40:44 |
| #1 I seriously question whether any stories about Berkeley should be filed under HomeFront |
| Posted by: Frank G 2003-05-07 08:38:33 |