Bush Anti-Terror Plan Blocked

A federal jury acquitted the leaders of a Muslim charity on charges of supporting Middle-Eastern terrorism. As a result, the U.S. government’s effort to shut down charity organizations that are suspected of being hidden channels for financing of terrorist organizations in the Middle East has been blocked.

According to yesterday’s report by the New York Times, a federal jury in Texas acquitted three former executive members of the Holy Land Foundation, who were charged with helping terrorist organizations to purchase bombs and weapons. The judge ruled that the defendants were not guilty due to a lack of evidence confirming the 30 suspected charges that were raised by the prosecution.

However, the jury could not reach verdict on one charge, which is still deadlocked.

The Holy Land Foundation, which was established in 1988 in Los Angeles, is the largest Muslim charity organization. The foundation once boasted its $56 million assets. It has been under U.S. government surveillance due to suspicions that a number of its associated organizations actively support terrorist groups. Since President Bush declared the freezing of the charity’s assets in 2001, their business was basically suspended.

After the declaration of its ‘War on Terror’, the Bush administration prosecuted the Holy Land Foundation and its backers, claiming that that it was a vital step in cutting the channels of illegal financing for the purchase of weapons by terrorist organizations such as Hamas. However, the administration failed to prove its suspicions at trial.

Even though the Bush administration provided material supporting its accusation, such as the testimonies of Israel Intelligence Agency officials and 15 years of documents, including wiretaps and videotapes, there proved to be no concrete evidence. In the process, the fact that the charity had donated money for the establishment of hospitals and aid to the poor in Palestine was confirmed.

In response, the prosecution argued that the Holy Land Foundation helped Hamas to spread its ideology through these charity activities, which did not appeal to the jury.

lightee@donga.com