The Money Jihad blog is reporting that a coalition of U.K. Islamic charities, four of which are know to have been part of the Union of Good (UOG), are seeking “unfettered access” to distribute aid in Gaza. According to the report:
A coalition of Islamic charities in Great Britain is insisting on unfettered access to distribute ‘humanitarian aid’ to Gaza, which is code for the freedom to work with any entity in Gaza, even if it includes Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, Al-Aqsa Martyrs Brigade, PFLP; any other terrorist organization or their affiliated foundations, schools, orphanages, and hospitals; or for that matter, armories, safehouses, munitions depots; or whatever other group or facility these ‘charities’ decide to work with. The ‘restrictions,’ which are pretty mild and reasonable, on transferring cash to Gaza (or to any overseas location for that matter) are in place for a reason. Now is not the time for unmonitored, undisclosed, un-taxed financial transactions to Gaza under the guise of ‘humanitarian aid.’The Nov. 19 letter from Muslim Charities Forum to foreign minister William Hague is signed by 17 Islamic charities. Of these, at least three—Human Appeal International, Muslim Hands, and Muslim Aid—have been previously implicated for membership in Yusuf Qaradawi’s Union of Good—a network of charities known to fund Hamas (a charge which Muslim Aid denies). Other signatories include the Muslim Charities Forum, which is itself an umbrella organization that unites several pro-Hamas charities in Britain; Islamic Relief, whose bank account with UBS was recently closed due to terror finance concerns; and the Ummah Welfare Trust, whose bank account with Barclay’s was closed in 2009 for the same reason. Quite the group…
See the rest here.
Four of the signatories to the letter:
- Human Appeal International
- Islamic Relief UK
- Muslim Aid
- Muslim Hands
are known to have been associated with the Union of Good (UOG), a charity coalition headed by global Muslim Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi and described in a NEFA Foundation report as:
The Union of Good is a coalition of Islamic charities that provides financial support to both the Hamas “social” infrastructure, as well as its terrorist activities. It is headed by global Muslim Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi, and most of the trustees and member organizations are associated with the global Muslim Brotherhood. The Union of Good was banned by Israel in 2002 and was recently designated a terrorist entity by the United States, although neither Youssef Qaradawi nor any of the Trustees were similarly designated. Despite the fact that action has been taken against some of its member organizations in Europe, many of its other European member organizations continue to operate. Further, the Union of Good itself does not appear to be under investigation in Europe.
Another NEFA report discusses the four U.K. Union of Good charities in detail, including Muslim Aid, stating:
As with the UG itself, the U.K. member organizations, their donors, and their leaders are often associated with the global Muslim Brotherhood and are themselves frequently inter-related, sometimes sharing Trustees, banks, and in some cases, using each other to deliver aid and/or donating to each other. The U.K. member organizations appear to also deliver aid in a similar manner, donating to “partner” organizations in the Palestinian Territories, many of which are associated with Hamas and who are responsible for use of the aid money. It is often difficult to understand how the UG member charity money is actually used, as funded projects are described in only general terms.