Turkey Prosecutor Absolves Yasin Al-Qadi, But Is He Right!

By Victor Comras

Arab News reported March 20th that Turkey�s Chief Public Prosecutor formally ruled there is no evidence to suggest that Saudi businessman Yasin al-Qadi has been involved in any funding for Al Qaeda and that there was no grounds for the Turkish authorities to bring further proceedings against him. It is not clear what effect, if any, this decision may have on Al Qadi's assets in Turkey which include at least two construction companies. Turkey reported to the UN 1267(Al Qaeda) Sanctions Committee last year that it has frozen some $ 2 million in bank accounts related to Yasin Al-Qadi. Despite the Prosecutors ruling, Turkey remains obligated to freeze the assets pursuant to UN Security Council Resolution 1526 (2004).

What are the facts here? And how strong is the case against Al Qadi?

Yasin Al-Qadi was designated by the US Treasury Department on October 12, 2001 as a �Specially Designated Global Terrorist� pursuant to Executive Order 13224. The statement issued by Treasury indicated that al Qadi was responsible for running the Muwafaq (Blessed Relief) Foundation and that "Muwafaq {Blessed Relief is the English Translation} is an al-Qaeda front that receives funding from wealthy Saudi businessmen.... Saudi businessmen have been transferring millions of dollars to bin Laden through Blessed Relief." Al-Qadi�s name was subsequently submitted for UN designation jointly by the United States and Saudi Arabia.

The US Treasury designation of Al-Qadi was based, in part, on a series of FBI investigations into activities which linked Al-Qadi to various charities and companies implicated in channeling money to al Qaeda and Hamas. His Muwafaq (Blessed Relief) Foundation appears prominently in these investigations. Other Al Qadi US investments including BMI Real Estate Development, Kadi International, Inc, and Ptech have all come under investigation. Al-Qadi also has numerous interests overseas that have come under suspicion.

A 1998 FBI report linked Al-Qadi to the transfer of funds to Hamas via the Chicago based Quranic Literary Institute. According to Court papers in that case, Al Qadi transferred some $820,000 from a Swiss bank account that ended up with Mohammed Salah, who subsequently used some of the money to obtain weapons for Hamas. Additional funds were also channeled to Hamas leadership.

Al-Qadi and the Muwafaq Foundation were also linked via accounts in the National Commercial Bank of Saudi Arabia to Osama bin Ladin. Bin Ladin, in an interview in 1995 identifed Muwafaq as one of its major funding sources.

Al Qadi has also been implicated in the on-going investigation into allegations that a network of companies and charities in Northern Virgina channeled funds to al Qaeda in Bosnia and elsewhere. This includes a company identified as BMI established by an Egyptian, Soliman Bihieri, who was convicted of visa fraud. According to the affidavit supporting Bihieri�s arrest, BMI served as a financial conduit for several known Hamas and al Qaeda moneymen. Investigators also uncovered in his possession contact information for two individuals described by the Treasury Department as "financial advisers to al-Qaeda.� Funding for BMI came, in large part from Al-Qadi.

FBI Agent Robert Wright has reportedly stated that his investigation into Yasin Al Qadi�s activities led him to believe that Al Qadi was also implicated in funding for the 1998 bombings of US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Wright has reportedly detailed several leads that the FBI had, but failed to investigate, concerning al Qadi, in a manuscript entitled "Fatal Betrayals of the Intelligence Mission." The FBI has held up release of this manuscript which is now caught up in a legal wrangle between Wright and the Agency. Wright played a key role in the investigation code-named "Vulgar Betrayal," which led to the 1998 seizure of $1.4 million of U.S. funds "destined for terrorist activities."

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