The article requires a subscription to the Journal, so not everyone who clicks on the link below will be able to read it. But suffice it to say that the West is engaging the Muslim Brotherhood to aid the Egyptian economy. This comes as no surprise, seeing as the West has promoted Shariah-Compliant Finance against its own interests. (Note that the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt has already declared its intention to make the country’s stock market Shariah-Compliant.)

Western cooperation with the Muslim Brotherhood is ill-advised to say the least. While the Brotherhood claims to have sworn off violence, they founded HAMAS, a designated terrorist organization and all Sunni Jihadist terrorist organizations trace their origins back to the Brotherhood. And even though the Brotherhood claims to be non-violent, their ultimate goals are virtually identical to those of Al Qaeda, Hamas and other Jihadist terrorist groups.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204062704577220454030969184.html

http://arabnews.com/economy/corporatenews/article577396.ece

• “The report found that smaller, local, community-based NPOs, especially informal ethnic and faith based charities, often fall outside regulatory scrutiny and could be especially vulnerable to money laundering and terrorism financing.”
• “This is particularly the case for organisations that regularly use informal methods of funds transfer - such as alternative remittance services.”
• “The report found that organisations that have overseas offices in less-regulated countries, their structure may make them more vulnerable than their size suggests.”

• “It was reported in the 2010 typology report from the Asia-Pacific Group on Money Laundering that the most ‘significant’ cases of non-profit abuse for terrorism financing detected in Australia involved the collection of donations, often following a visit by an overseas speaker that was organised by local leaders (APG 2010). In these cases, the funds raised were wire transferred to overseas accounts but usually over a period of time in amounts of less than $10,000. These funds were generally sent to third parties who were suspected of having a connection with a terrorist organisation.” pg. 19

• “Those organisations identified as most susceptible are charities, and in particular faith-based charities, and smaller entities that do not necessarily have the resources (or the inclination) to commit to due diligence and similarly recommended procedures.” pg. 50

• “Related to this concern about the vulnerability of smaller NPOs, especially the less formal charities formed around ethnic and faith-based communities, was the preferred or common use of informal methods for the collection and transfer of funds. The identity of donors may not necessarily be pursued by the charity for cultural or other reasons and funds are known to be relayed to overseas locations using remittance services or similar methods of informal funds transfer.”…”Risk primarily lies with that subset of entities that collected and dispersed donations, used informal methods of funds transfer and/or were unregulated.” pg. 51

And although these are generally met with the response “but we have no proof though that Islamic charities are funding terror”, at least there is an acceptance that this may be because of the lack of oversight, transparency and regulation which the report is trying to address.

What to do about it?

The report suggests a number of mitigants and other regulatory responses – some of which are helpful, the rest deliberately miss the point. In particular, there is too much focus on self-regulation and too little attention given to ‘legitimate’ Islamic charities providing ‘legitimate’ Islamic charity (directly or indirectly) to terrorists.  Mostly, the report assumes that Islamic charities will be victims of abuse rather than motivated to circumvent all the mitigation strategies. For example “NPO’s, however, should…continue to avoid engaging with any organisation they suspect of being a terrorist group.” pg. 44.

We might argue that they were knuckleheads just for getting into the world of Shariah in the first place, but the lure of greed is immense, so we understand what they were up to.

Allow us a moment to backtrack now. You may recall a little over a week ago we reported on Goldman’s foray into Shariah-compliant bonds:

http://www.shariahfinancewatch.org/blog/2012/01/31/goldman-sachs-lies-down-with-dogs-and-gets-fleas/

Now the plot has thickened somewhat. The latest reports from state-controlled Islamic media is that Goldman Sachs may have published some prospectuses for their Sukuk offering in which they listed Shariah scholars who had not reviewed the offering. This is bad form in any business transaction, Shariah or otherwise, and represents a fundamental error on some poor sap at Goldman which would cost him or her their job no doubt.

But what is especially ironic about this affair in terms of Shariah Finance is that committing an act like this in any of the nations in which Shariah plays a prominent role in justice–such as Saudi Arabia, Iran and Sudan for instance–could very well land the perpetrator in a world of trouble that would result in some primitive, brutal form of punishment. We would like to note that the useful idiots at Goldman Sachs who think that promoting Shariah-Compliant Finance is a good idea would almost certainly not want to live under such a system. Why then are they inviting that system in through the West’s financial backdoor???

http://arabnews.com/economy/article572991.ece

The Jihadist Muslim cleric is believed to have raised funds for terrorist groups and the British government has declared him a risk to national security. Moreover, a court in his native Jordan has found Qatada guilty in his absence of involvement in two bomb plots, and a senior British judge has described him as a “truly dangerous” supporter of Muslim terrorist groups.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-02-08/anger-over-abu-qatada-release/3817190

The Islamic Strategy Index Certificates “are certified by the Central Council of Muslims in Germany” as Shariah-Compliant.  The Central Council of Muslims in Germany is an umbrella group of twenty-two Muslim organizations.

It is worth noting that 5% of the proceeds of the fund will be donated to charity as directed by the Central Council of Muslims…

This is the aspect of Shariah-Compliant Finance that so many in the West are very concerned about. Dozens of Muslim charities in the West have been found to support Jihad…

http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/german-bank-offers-islam-compliant-investment_626308.html

The investment banking giant dutifully employed a Shariah advisory firm, Dar Al-Istithmar Limited, and went about the business of putting together the financing arrangement.

There was just one problem. Goldman Sachs made one mistake: they trusted the financial jihadis. To make a long story short, some other Shariah scholars have questioned Goldman Sachs’ sukuk arrangement and the whole deal is now in limbo.

We’d like to say we have sympathy for Goldman Sachs’ plight, but let’s face it: they’re the biggest of the big boys and they knew what they were getting into. We also doubt that they learned their lesson. No doubt, a few unfortunate saps at Goldman Sachs will take the fall for this debacle and a new crew will be brought in to take its place to grease the right Shariah scholars to get approval for a new scheme in support of the financial jihad…

http://arabnews.com/economy/islamicfinance/article569056.ece

The company is Dana Gas, a major natural gas exploration and production company. There are questions as to whether the company can meet its payment obligations under the sukuk. Its stock price is down 41% over the past year and Bank of America downgraded the firm last week.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-01-30/dana-sukuk-yield-soars-on-repayment-concern-abu-dhabi-mover.html

Iran affirms that all of its banks are Shariah-compliant. So much for “ethical investing.”

http://en.trend.az/regions/iran/1986097.html

As you might expect, the answer turns out to be “no,” which, given the author’s background should come as no surprise.

This is a common tactic of the financial jihadis; build a straw man and then proceed to burn him down.

The author is a guy named Oliver Agha. Agha is typical of many of the financial jihadis in our midst. He’s a New York educated and formerly-based lawyer who has decided to specialize in Shariah. Now he works out of the UAE.

Most importantly, he is on the board of the Accounting and Auditing Organization of Islamic Finance Institutions (AAOIFI), an organization we have profiled here on SFW in the past:

http://www.shariahfinancewatch.org/blog/2010/01/20/aaoifi-moves-to-seize-control-of-shariah-finance/

AAOIFI has been going to great lengths to gain control of Shariah Finance globally and has a Shariah Advisory Board of its own:

http://www.aaoifi.com/aaoifi/TheOrganization/AAOIFIStructure/AAOIFIShariaBoard/tabid/71/language/en-US/Default.aspx

Note that the Chair of that Board at AAOIFI is none other than Mufti Taqi Usmani.

To be sure, Usmani is one of the most prolific Shariah scholars in the world of finance. He receives compensation from dozens of banks and investment firms.

Before cashing in with the private sector, Usmani was a Shariah judge on the Supreme Court of Pakistan for 20 years.

Usmani is also a complete Jihadist.

In September 2001, Usmani was part of a small delegation of clerics known to be sympathetic to the Taliban in Afghanistan and travelled there to ostensibly convince Mullah Omar, the leader of the Taliban, to turn over Osama Bin Laden to the United States. Information leaked later by some of the clerics present at the meeting indicates that the delegation may have, in fact, tried to stiffen the Taliban’s will to resist.

Usmani is a prolific writer in Urdu, Arabic and English, having published dozens of books and countless articles.

Among his books available in English is a vitriolic attack on Christianity called “What is Christianity” and a broadside against the West and modernity called “Islam and Modernism.”

Here is one particularly revealing quote from “Islam and Modernism:”

“Killing is to continue until the unbelievers pay jizyah (subjugation tax) after they are humbled or overpowered.”

Usmani is well-known for his uncompromising views on the mandatory nature of conducting offensive jihad against non-Muslims “in order to establish the supremacy of Islam” worldwide.

Usmani also complained bitterly at the lack of martyrs to combat American forces in Iraq:

“No one is found having any desire of Shahadah (martyrdom). How many mothers are there who want to sacrifice their sons for the cause of Islam? How many sisters are there who want to say goodbye to their brothers departing to wage jihad against non-believers?”

Usmani referred to Americans in Iraq as “stinking atheists” and “the worst ever butchers and vultures of the world” who are “clawing off the flesh of bodies of innocent Iraqi Muslims.”

According to what Usmani has said and written, aggressive jihad against unbelievers is an Islamic obligation and, as such, does not need any justification.

“For a non-Muslim state to have more pomp and glory than a Muslim state itself is an obstacle, therefore to shatter this grandeur is among the greater objectives of jihad.”

For Taqi Usmani, offensive jihad can be postponed for a time only in cases when the Muslims in question are not strong enough to battle or otherwise challenge the infidels. And so, he advises the Muslims to live peacefully in countries like Britain, for instance, but only until they gain enough power to carry out jihad.

Under Pakistani dictator General Zia al-Haq (1977-1988), himself a zealous advocate of Shariah, Usmani played a key role in the introduction of the Shariah-based punishment code known as the Huddud Ordinance, as well as blasphemy laws and other Shariah injunctions, to the huge detriment of Pakistani justice and civil liberties.

That a guy like Agha has risen to such prominence in American legal and financial circles should be a concern to us all. Note that his law firm describes itself as “The First Shariah Compliant Law Firm:”

http://www.aghaandco.com/

Here is the link to his article written for Reuters, “Is Islamic Finance a Failure?” but it really isn’t worth reading given what we know about the author’s associations, unless you would like some insight into those who would infiltrate Shariah into America through our financial back door…

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/27/islamicfinance-future-idUSL5E8CR0FV20120127

What the article is careful to avoid, however, is the fact that zakat is also used to fund Jihad, referred to in Islamic law texts as “those fighting in the way of allah.”

Given the fact that the Muslim Brotherhood spawned Hamas and continues to support Hamas to this day, it would be prudent to assume that official zakat funds could very easily find their way into the hands of Hamas terrorists…

http://www.ikhwanweb.com/article.php?id=29477

Today we are greeted with the news that the Muslim Brotherhood backs free markets. HA!

“We have sought to reassure people that a free market in Egypt is the only way forward,” said Mahmoud Ghozlan, a spokesman for the Muslim Brotherhood.

There are a couple of problems with Ghozlan’s statement.

1. Shariah-compliance mandates a system of economics which is characterized by centralized control and authority. It is the OPPOSITE of free enterprise. There is no predominantly Islamic nation in the world today that doesn’t have centralized control of its economy.

2. Ghozlan almost immediately followed up his statement with one that completely contradicts his claim of commitment to free markets:

“They ask me ‘will Egypt continue as a free market or will the country return to the socialist ways of the ’60s and ’70s?’,” he said. “My answer to them is that I am sure Egypt’s economy will remain a free market. The Islamists see the stock exchange as fully halal. But some privatisation policies may change. For example, instead of selling to one investor, the government would arrange the sale on the stock exchange as a means to spread the wealth to the Egyptian people.”

Exactly how is that free market capitalism?

Shariah-compliant finance is NOT capitalism.

http://www.thenational.ae/thenationalconversation/industry-insights/markets/muslim-brotherhood-backs-free-market

A few we have seen already:

• Al Qaeda flags flying over courthouses.

• Promises of Shariah being imposed from new regime officials.

• The emergence of Islamist political parties and the Muslim Brotherhood, which came as no surprise, since Muslim Brotherhood cleric Sheikh Yousef al-Qaradawi called for the assassination of Moamar Qaddafi in Libya almost as soon as he arrived back in Egypt from Qatar several months ago.

Now we are seeing one of the first steps for imposing Shariah being taken in the new Libya. Libya’s central bank is set to finalize Islamic finance regulations by March, in what would be the first major step towards introducing shariah-compliant banking in the country.

“The banking law of 2005 will be changed by adding a new chapter regulating Islamic banking and once the law is approved, Islamic banks will be given licences,” central bank official Ali Mohammed Salem said. “It is possible that it will be ready by the end of March.”

Mustafa Abdul Jalil, chairman of the National Transitional Council, said in October Libya’s new rulers were working on an Islamic banking system.

http://www.brecorder.com/business-a-finance/banking-a-finance/40363-libyan-islamic-banking-law-seen-in-march.html

Now, the financial jihadists are finding their way to Kashmir to get the financial sector to accept that which the violent Jihadists could not impose through warfare: Shariah.

http://www.kashmirobserver.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=9979:mmu-to-explore-islamic-banking-in-kashmir-&catid=15:top-news&Itemid=2

http://www.shariahfinancewatch.org/blog/2009/06/21/hizb-ut-tahrir-jihadists-target-capitalism/

Evidently, in Hizb-ut-Tahrir’s twisted logic, that fits in nicely with the Gold Standard…We’re skeptical of the connection…You pretty much need free markets for a true gold standard and Shariah-Compliant Finance is one of the ultimate forms of centralized, totalitarian economics known to mankind…

http://www.hizb.org.uk/islamic-culture/gold-standard-the-future-for-a-stable-global-currency

It is our opinion that the Sauds will not do this out of necessity; there is no reason for the Sauds to have to use debt instruments to fund their national operations because of their oil wealth. The Sauds will do this to set the example for other nations and to give them added credibility when the OIC (Organization for Islamic Cooperation) goes to nations such as South Africa, France, the UK, South Korea, the Philippines and others to suggest that they use the Shariah-compliant sukuk mechanism for their sovereign debt if they want access to that oil capital.

Watch this space…This will be the most common form of Islamic imperialism in the next five years.

http://www.zawya.com/story.cfm/sidZAWYA20111226042517/Is_Kingdom_heading_for_debut_sukuk_in_2012

Companies and governments in the Gulf sold Islamic bonds this year at the fastest clip since 2007, underscoring a trend where borrowers are seeing more appetite for their debt among regional investors in the wake of the sovereign-debt crisis sweeping Europe.

http://www.thenational.ae/featured-content/channel-page/business/middle-article-list/appetite-for-sukuk-surges-across-the-gulf-this-year

http://www.shariahfinancewatch.org/blog/2011/10/17/correcting-the-new-misinformation-on-islamic-charities-funding-jihadist-terrorism/

Obviously, this only tells half the story.

The other side of the concern here is the connection between zakat and Shariah-compliant finance and/or Shariah banking.

The essay linked below about the zakat system in Malaysia makes the connection for us. It is buried deep in the article, but it can be found.

The essay speaks to the zakat obligations of Muslim depositors and then mentions in passing that some banks pay the zakat on behalf of the depositor, absolving them of the obligation on those savings…

If the bank has paid zakat on behalf of the depositor, he need not pay any further. This service is available at Lembaga Tabung Haji and Bank Islam.

This is clear evidence that Shariah-compliant financial institutions are involved directly in zakat payments, which we know often partially go to supporting jihad.

Why is Wall Street not more worried about this?

http://www.bernama.com/bernama/v5/newsfeatures.php?id=636120

That may be the situation Goldman Sachs finds itself in with regard to its Islamic bond (sukuk) program.

It seems Goldman got the blessing from several Shariah scholars when they started up their $2 billion sukuk program, but since then a couple of key Shariah scholars in Saudi Arabia and Dubai have expressed doubts as to the compliance of Goldman’s scheme. This could end up being the equivalent of a “scarlet letter” on the program, putting Goldman Sachs in the unenviable position of holding the bag. If that happens, world demand for sukuk could suffer, and as far as we’re concerned at SFW, that would be a good thing.

Over the past year, the focus of the global financial jihadists has clearly shifted to sukuk with efforts being made to intimidate and cajole various world central banks into issuing sovereign debt in sukuk format in order to gain access to Islamic petrodollars.

This is certainly not the first time that Shariah scholars have raised doubts about the Shariah-compliance of sukuk. Back in 2009, Mufti Taqi Usmani, who is one of the Islamic world’s most prominent Shariah Finance advisers, declared that most sukuk were in fact NOT Shariah-compliant. His opinion held the industry back for some time.

Our message to Goldman Sachs: “When you lay down with dogs, you’re bound to get fleas.”

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-12-20/goldman-sachs-sukuk-row-may-dent-industry-lure-islamic-finance.html

The objective of the training was to educate participants about the characteristics of various Sharia compliant financial products and how to deal with their accounting issues.

SFW readers who conduct business with KPMG may wish to re-evaluate those business ties in view of these activities…

http://main.omanobserver.om/node/76981

Egypt’s political powers expressed their support for the Egyptian Stock Exchange at a press conference Monday, as the Islamist parties, which dominate parliament, pointed out that trading in the exchange is “Sharia-compliant,” or permissible in Islam.

Tareq Shaalan, coordinator of the planning committee of Al-Nour Party, pointed out that a new award will be introduced to the Sharia-compliant banks or companies with the best performing portfolios in the stock market.

“With that being said, that the trading in the bourse is halal, we want to encourage trading so we plan to introduce an award for the companies which are fully Sharia-compliant, and companies will be judged on their performance,” he said.

http://thedailynewsegypt.com/stock-market/islamist-parties-say-stock-exchange-sharia-compliant.html

That’s why the article linked below is so surprising and important. A news outlet in Qatar has actually published a story quoting a Shariah Finance expert out of Saudi Arabia warning that, compared to conventional finance, Shariah-Compliant Finance may actually have GREATER liquidity concerns.

http://www.zawya.com/story.cfm/sidZAWYA20111222062421/Islamic_banking_faces_liquidity_risk_Expert

Some of this activity has occurred in the USA, with two cases in Minnesota and Missouri:

http://www.shariahfinancewatch.org/blog/category/jihadist-groupsindividuals/al-shabaab/

As a result of this activity, scrutiny by US federal authorities have led a bank in Minnesota to shut down wire transfers between the US and Somalia.

As you can imagine there are a great many people wailing and moaning about the effect of this policy announcement. Perhaps if those same people had been as concerned over money leaving the US and falling in the hands of Jihadists in the first place this wouldn’t have been necessary.

The statement in the article below from the First Secretary of the Somali mission to the UN about urging hawalas — to make sure “money doesn’t fall into the wrong hands,” simply could not ring more hollow. The hawala system has been an integral part of the financial network for Jihad for generations.

http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/12/23/in-somalia-fears-over-us-wire-transfer-block/

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/12/23/in-somalia-fears-over-us-wire-transfer-block/#ixzz1hSVuFyK1

The United States says that its designation of key members of al-Qaeda targeting a core al-Qaeda financial channel has drained the terror outfit’s financial streams, and that it is “in a much worse financial position today than” it was a decade ago.

http://www.rttnews.com/Content/GeneralNews.aspx?Node=B1&Id=1787151

Oytun Ayse Mihalik funneled about $2,000 to a person in Pakistan over a three-week period beginning late last year, knowing the money would be used to prepare for and carry out attacks against the U.S. military and others overseas.

http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/story/2011-12-21/california-woman-terror-charge/52147722/1

South Africa has a relatively small Muslim population, so there can be little doubt that the instigation behind this move comes from outside the country, from monied interests in the Islamic world. This is something we can expect more of. Don’t be surprised if one day in the not-too-distant future the US Treasury doesn’t float the idea of a sukuk, using Shariah-compliance to attract petrodollars from lenders who insist upon it…

In a move that could position SA at the forefront of the global Islamic Sharia law-compliant sukuk (bond) market, national treasury has called on banks to submit proposals for the issue by government of a sukuk. http://www.fm.co.za/Article.aspx?id=161623

With the imposition of the latest international economic sanctions against Iran and the UAE being under pressure from Washington to enforce them, Tehran’s trade ties with the Gulf Arab neighbor and its considerable economic interests in the region have taken a direct hit.

http://arabnews.com/economy/article552201.ece

Al-Suri is a senior al-Qaida facilitator and financier based in Iran.

Operating under an agreement between al-Qaida and the Iranian Government, al-Suri moves money and al-Qaida recruits from the Middle East through Iran and on to Pakistan and Afghanistan. Iranian authorities maintain a relationship with al-Suri and have permitted him to operate within Iran’s borders since 2005.

Al-Suri is an important fundraiser for al-Qaida and has collected money from donors and fundraisers throughout the Persian Gulf region. He has funneled significant amounts of money via Iran to al-Qaida’s leadership in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Working with the Iranian government, al-Suri also arranges the release of al-Qaida personnel from Iranian prisons. When al-Qaida operatives are released, the Iranian government transfers them to the custody of al-Suri, who then coordinates their travel to Pakistan.

On July 28, 2011, the U.S. Treasury Department designated al-Suri under Executive Order 13224 as an individual with whom U.S. persons are prohibited from engaging in commercial or financial transactions.

Al-Suri was born in 1982 in al-Qamishli, Syria. He has black hair and brown eyes. He has used other aliases, including Yaseen al-Suri, Izz al-Din Abd al-Farid Khalil, and Zayn al-Abadin.

More information about Yasin al-Suri here:

Ezedin Abdel Aziz Khalil, more commonly known as Yasin al-Suri, is a senior al-Qaida facilitator based in Iran. Al-Suri moves money and recruits from across the Middle East into Iran, and then on to Pakistan, to support al-Qaida’s senior leadership. Iranian authorities maintain a relationship with al-Suri and have permitted him to operate within Iran’s borders since 2005.

Al-Suri facilitates the movement of recruits for al-Qaida from the Gulf to Pakistan and Afghanistan via Iran. He is also an important fundraiser for al-Qaida and has collected money from donors and fundraisers throughout the Gulf. Al-Suri funnels significant funds via Iran for onward passage to al-Qaida’s leadership in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Working with the Iranian government, al-Suri arranges the release of al-Qaida personnel from Iranian prisons. When al-Qaida operatives are released, the Iranian government transfers them to al-Suri, who then facilitates their travel to Pakistan.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5j-w0aaJr_wBd2GXHCGZJAHCDg–g?docId=CNG.ec13fa2d970e9e385e80aacbafe95753.e81

The European Union widened sanctions against Syria in a push to end a violent crackdown on opponents of President Bashar al-Assad, adding 18 people including senior military and intelligence officials to its blacklist.

The EU measures, approved by the bloc’s 27 governments yesterday, impose asset freezes and a travel ban on people who are said to be responsible for the violence.

The EU sanctions also target members of Syria’s electronic surveillance forces and Deputy Interior Minister Saqr Khayr Bek. The move brings to 74 the number of Syrians blacklisted by the EU. European companies are forbidden from doing business with 19 firms and groups.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-11-15/eu-widens-syria-sanctions-as-pressure-grows-on-assad-to-quit.html

http://www.voanews.com/english/news/africa/UN-Monitoring-Group-to-Recommend-al-Shabab-Sanctions-133846953.html

It has been known for decades that Hezbollah works hand in glove with the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and receives training, arms, equipment, support and financing from Iran. But as the article linked below explains, Hezbollah also receives money in the form of donations from Shia Muslims around the world and it also raises money from a variety of activities, ranging from legitimate investments to drug running.

Here are some highlights from an important report by Ana Maria Luca:

Brazil, Paraguay, Mexico, Sierra Leone, Angola, Congo, Uganda, South Africa, Southeast Asia and the United States of America. This is not a list of vacation destinations, but locations where large numbers of Lebanese Shia Hezbollah supporters have settled, causing US government agencies to keep a close eye on them to see if they are sending money to the party, which America has considered a terrorist organization since 1999.

For over a decade US anti-terrorism agencies have been trying to connect Hezbollah to drug smuggling rings in Colombia, Mexico and Venezuela; the illegal weapons trade in the US, Southeast Asia and Europe; blood diamond smuggling in Africa; and even with al Qaida’s international activities.

Tens of Lebanese Shia have been arrested in the past decade for illegal activities, and several businessmen were blacklisted by the US Department of Treasury and authorities in West Africa and Latin America.

“After 2006 it became clear that Hezbollah has been running its businesses and has its clients in the Shia community who contribute financially,” said Hares Sleiman, professor at the Lebanese University and an expert in the Shia community. “They invest and manage these investments, but they also have partnerships with businessmen who have their own fixed businesses,” he said.

http://www.nowlebanon.com/NewsArticleDetails.aspx?ID=332441&MID=0&PID=0

http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/11/15/islamic-growth-deutschebank-idUSL5E7MF1Q920111115

The ILMC’s main objective is to develop short-term financial instruments to enable financial institutions to maintain liquidity in a Shariah-compliant fashion. In other words, this is a key effort in cutting off the Islamic world from the Western world in terms of short-term financing, thus compelling Western institutions to comply with the new Shariah standards…

Among the members of the IFSB are the following institutions from terrorist sponsoring nations:

• Al Jazeera Sudanese Jordanian Bank (Sudan)

• Al Rowad Financial Services Co. (Sudan)

• Al Salam Bank (Sudan)

• Animal Resources Bank (Sudan)

• Bank Eghtesad Novin (Iran)

• Bank Keshavarzi (Iran)

• Bank of Khartoum (Sudan)

• Bank Saderat Iran (Iran)

• Byblos Bank Africa Ltd (Sudan)

• Central Bank of Sudan (Sudan)

• Central Bank of Syria (Syria)

• Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran (Iran)

• Faisal Islamic Bank (Sudan)

• Farmer’s Commercial Bank (Sudan)

• Industrial Development Bank (Sudan)

• Islamic Insurance Company (Sudan)

• Khartoum Stock Exchange (Sudan)

• Omdurman National Bank (Sudan)

• Securities and Exchange Organization (Iran)

• Shiekan Insurance and Reinsurance Co. Ltd (Sudan)

• Sudan Financial Services Company (Sudan)

• Sudanese Banks Association (Sudan)

• Sudanese French Bank (Sudan)

• Tadamon Islamic Bank (Sudan)

• The Insurance Supervisory Authority (Sudan)

• The National Pensions Fund (Sudan)

This is hardly surprising given that the IFSB’s council is made up of central bank governors, including the governors of the central banks of the three terrorist-sponsoring nations: Iran, Sudan and Syria:

H.E. Dr. Adib Mayaleh, Governor, Central Bank of Syria

H.E Dr. Mahmoud Bahmani, Governor, Central Bank of the Islamic Republic of Iran

H.E. Dr. Mohamed Khair Ahmed Elzubear, Governor, Central Bank of Sudan

Reports indicate that these activities have been used to preach jihad among the flood victims…

http://nmen.org/at-flood-relief-camps-in-pakistani-towns-lashkar-e-taiba-leaders-impart-religious-education-and-preach-jihad/

Central to the discussion was the potential role of Shariah-compliant finance in contributing to economic growth and financial stability. Many myths have been propagated about the Shariah financial system being in a better position to cope with the vagaries and excesses of the global financial crisis, because of the proscription of Islam on interest-based speculation.

The OIC has long been a tool used by the Saudis, as well as other Salafist powers, to promote Islam and Shariah around the world by using clout created by petrodollars.

http://arabnews.com/economy/islamicfinance/article533081.ece

Asya was incorporated in Turkey in 1996 as a financial institution to provide interest-free banking services and trades on the Istanbul stock exchange.

Fitch has 4 ratings on its ratings scale that qualify as investment grade: AAA, AA, A and BBB. The B rating assigned to Asya’s sukuk is considered junk status.

http://cpifinancial.net/v2/News.aspx?v=1&aid=10050&sec=Islamic%20Finance

Five billion dollars in bonds will be issued in the current Iranian calendar year (to end March 20, 2012) to speed up the implementation of South Pars gas field projects, the National Iranian Oil Company’s managing director Ahmad Qalebani told the Shana news agency.

Iran will also issue $15 billion in sukuk bonds in the current year to be invested in the domestic oil industry, oil minister Rostam Qasemi said earlier this month.

Sukuk is an Islamic financial certificate, similar to a bond that complies with Sharia, Islamic religious law. Sukuks must be able to link the returns and cash flows of the financing to the assets purchased, or the returns generated from an asset purchased.

Oil and gas revenue is the primary means by which Iran funds its support of Hezbollah, Al Qaeda and Hamas and arms militias in Iraq and the Taliban in Afghanistan. It is also the primary method by which Iran funds its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

Because of this, anyone who buys these sukuk is contributing to the sponsorship of terrorism and the proliferation of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles.

http://tehrantimes.com/index.php/economy-and-business/92502-iran-to-issue-5-billion-in-bonds-for-south-pars

Experts say that what probably sets Ethica apart is that their 4-month Certified Islamic Finance Executive™(CIFE™) certification is the only 100% AAOIFI-compliant, 100% online Islamic finance program in the market today. AAOIFI stands for the Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions, the leading Islamic finance standard in the world and the de facto standard for over 90% of the world’s jurisdictions.

What is not as widely acknowledged about AAOIFI is the fact that it is led by that well-known Jihadist, Mufti Taqi Usmani. Usmani is the chair of the AAOIFI’s Shariah board and also sits on the advisory board of numerous banks and other financial institutions, but was removed from the Dow Jones Shariah advisory board and the HSBC Shariah advisory board, after his Jihadist ties and activities came to light…

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/2011-roundup-ethica-leads-in-islamic-finance-certification-with-over-20000-paying-users-133757028.html

The latest illustration of America’s leaky sanctions against the world’s foremost sponsor of Jihadist terrorism and proliferator of nuclear technology comes in the form of the revelation that Iran continues to export Persian rugs to the US…

http://www.tehrantimes.com/index.php/economy-and-business/4468-iran-still-exports-carpet-to-us-despite-sanctions-report