>From: Malamin Johnson <[log in to unmask]> >Reply-To: The Gambia and related-issues mailing list <[log in to unmask]> >To: [log in to unmask] >Subject: Al Qaeda Gold Moved to Sudan - Victor Bout, Arms dealer >Date: Tue, 3 Sep 2002 18:29:57 +0000 > >Al Qaeda Gold Moved to Sudan >Iran, U.A.E. Used as Transit Points >By Douglas Farah >Washington Post Staff Writer >Tuesday, September 3, 2002; Page A01 >Financial officers of al Qaeda and the Taliban have quietly shipped >large >quantities of gold out of Pakistan to Sudan in recent weeks, >transiting >through the United Arab Emirates and Iran, according to European, >Pakistani >and U.S. investigators. >The sources said several shipments of boxes of gold, usually >disguised as >other products, were taken by small boat from the Pakistani port of >Karachi >to either Iran or Dubai, and from there mixed with other goods and >flown by >chartered airplanes to Khartoum, the Sudanese capital. >Although it is not clear how much gold has been moved, U.S. and >European >officials said the quantity was significant and was an important >indicator >that the al Qaeda network and members of Afghanistan's deposed >Taliban >militia still had access to large financial reserves. >European and U.S. intelligence officials said the movement of gold >also >highlighted three significant developments in the war on terrorism: >the >growing role of Iranian intelligence units allied with the country's >hard-line clerics in protecting and aiding al Qaeda; the potential >reemergence of Sudan as a financial center for the organization; and >the >ability of the terrorist group to generate new sources of revenue >despite >the global crackdown on its finances. >The sources said Sudan may have been chosen because Osama bin Laden, >the >Saudi-born al Qaeda leader, and other members of the network are >familiar >with the country and retain business contacts there. They said >traditional >havens for al Qaeda money on the Arabian peninsula such as Saudi >Arabia and >United Arab Emirates were under intense international scrutiny, >while >transactions in Sudan could more easily pass unnoticed. >Gold has for years been the preferred financial instrument of the >Taliban >and al Qaeda. Most of the Taliban treasury was kept in gold when the >militia >ruled Afghanistan, and taxes were often collected in gold. Just >before the >Taliban and al Qaeda were driven from Afghanistan last year, the two >groups >shipped large amounts of gold to Dubai, and from there to other safe >havens, >according to U.S., European and Arab officials. >Senior U.S. intelligence officials said they are investigating the >information about the new gold shipments and had opened a case on >the matter >but had no further comment. "We know they are looking at new sources >of >revenue and are finding new ways to raise and move funds to where >they are >accessible," a U.S. official said. "The bankers are the ones that >move the >money and the bankers are not sitting in caves in Afghanistan." >European and U.S. sources said they became aware of the shipments >after they >occurred, and have asked the Sudanese government to take measures to >halt >the flow. A spokesman for the Sudanese Embassy in Washington said he >had no >official information about the shipments and found the information >"hard to >believe." >"Sudan is not going to allow anything like this to come in >knowingly," the >official said. "We are concerned about terrorism. We are on a high >level of >alert since September 11." >But European intelligence sources said one of the hubs of bin >Laden's >organization continues to be Sudan, where he lived from 1991 to >1996, when >he was forced to move to Afghanistan. >Although the United States and other countries have praised Sudan >for its >cooperation in the war on terrorism, European and U.S. officials say >that >bin Laden, who invested tens of millions of dollars in the country >when it >harbored him, continues to have economic interests there. While >living in >Sudan, bin Laden operated a large construction business, bought >extensive >land holdings and helped found a bank. >A senior European intelligence official said there was growing >evidence that >Khartoum was again serving "as a sort of hub" for al Qaeda business >transactions. "He has banking contacts there, he has business >contacts there >and he is intimately familiar with the political and intelligence >structure >there," the official said. "He never fully left Sudan despite moving >to >Afghanistan." >The gold appears to be the fruit of what one Pakistani businessman >knowledgeable of Taliban financing called a "commodity for commodity >exchange," with the Taliban and al Qaeda trading opium and heroin >for gold. >When the Taliban ruled Afghanistan, according to Pakistani >intelligence >officials, it actively engaged in opium and heroin production, and >allowed >al Qaeda to raise funds through taxing the cultivation of poppy, the >raw >material for heroin. >The Pakistani businessman said that over the past two months >Pakistani >intelligence has picked up numerous reports indicating that al Qaeda >and the >Taliban were sending large amounts of gold out of Karachi after >selling >stashes of stored heroin and opium to drug traffickers in Central >Asia. >"This is new money, not money stashed away from before," the >Pakistani >source said. "The old network of moving drugs and trading it for >gold, which >they have done for years, is still operational." >European and Pakistani sources said some of the assets moving >through Iran >may be the remnants of bin Laden's personal fortune. U.S. and >European >officials believe bin Laden inherited about $30 million in the early >1990s >when his father, a Saudi construction magnate, died. >European terrorism experts said they were particularly troubled by >indications that Iranian intelligence officials were taking an >active role >in moving the gold. The sources said there were credible reports >that some >of the gold was flown on Iranian airplanes to Sudan. >"Iran is not a monolith, there are different groups, and some seem >to be >directly helping these transfers," one official said. "It doesn't >mean it is >a decision of the government, but they do not have full control over >what >the security agencies do." >Arab intelligence sources have reported that Iran is sheltering >senior al >Qaeda military and financial leaders in hotels and guest houses in >the >Afghan border cities of Mashhad and Zabol. >Gold has long been a favorite way of storing wealth in Southeast >Asia, the >Arabian peninsula and northern Africa. Smuggling gold by sea from >Karachi >into Iran and Dubai is also a centuries-old activity. >A draft United Nations report by a panel of experts states that al >Qaeda's >financial structure remains largely intact and retains access to >tens of >millions of dollars. >"A large portfolio of ostensibly legitimate businesses continue to >be >maintained and managed on behalf of Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda by >a number >of, as yet, unidentified intermediaries and associates across North >Africa, >the Middle East, Europe and Asia," the report said. "Estimates put >the value >of this portfolio at around $30 million." >The Treasury Department said the U.N. report presented an >"incomplete >picture of the financial war against terrorism." In a statement, a >spokesman >said that while much work remained to be done, the report did not >measure >the impact of seizures of millions of dollars in cash or the >freezing of >assets of more than 200 individuals since Sept. 11. >European officials said some of the chartered planes used to >transport the >gold and other commodities for the Taliban and al Qaeda were linked >to >Victor Bout, a Russian arms merchant who maintains more than 50 >aircraft in >the United Arab Emirates. >U.S. officials have called Bout the largest arms merchant in the >world and >say he has long had dealings with the Taliban, flying in weapons and >medicine for the group when it governed Afghanistan. >Despite an international arrest warrant issued in February for his >arrest, >Bout lives undisturbed in Moscow. >Staff writer Dana Priest contributed to this report. >© 2002 The Washington Post Company > > > > >_________________________________________________________________ >MSN Photos is the easiest way to share and print your photos: >http://photos.msn.com/support/worldwide.aspx > >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ > >To unsubscribe/subscribe or view archives of postings, go to the >Gambia-L Web interface >at: http://maelstrom.stjohns.edu/archives/gambia-l.html >To contact the List Management, please send an e-mail to: >[log in to unmask] > >~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~