21.12.2013 La rédaction
The United States accuse the president of Alkarama NGO foundation, based in Geneva, of financing Al-Qaeda. The NGO denies these accusations altogether, and further argues that its work annoys Washington as well as several Gulf countries
Geneva-based Alkarama NGO finds itself in a critical position, following accusations by the US government against the president of this organization specializing in defending human rights in the Arab world, for financing Al-Qaeda. These accusations are rejected altogether by the NGO.
Abdul Rahman Omeir al-Naimi, who was presented by Alkarama as a history professor based in Doha, Qatar, is now subject to economic sanctions on the part of the United States, the Treasury Department said on Wednesday. All the assets of Abdul Rahman Omeir al-Naimi, which are under Washington jurisdiction, are therefore frozen while US citizens are prohibited from doing business with him.
The Qatari man is accused of transferring nearly $ 600,000 to Al-Qaeda in 2013 via a representative of the terrorist nebula in Syria, under the cover of charitable activities. “Abdul Rahman Omeir al-Naimi has been funding and supporting terrorism for a decade. He has provided funds, material support and information to Al-Qaeda and its affiliates in Syria, Iraq, Somalia and Yemen” as per the statement issued by the Treasury Department .
Abdul Rahman Omeir al-Naimi has resigned from the Alkarama Foundation to “avoid harming” the NGO. “He will now appoint a lawyer to prove his innocence and contact the US authorities,” said Mourad Dhina, executive director of Alkarama.
The NGO, whose name means dignity in Arabic, acts as a bridge between victims of disappearances, torture, and arbitrary detention and UN complaint mechanisms based in Geneva. It prides itself on being the organization that transmits the greatest number of cases against the US.
Drones Investigation
On Friday, the board of trustees expressed in a statement its “support” to its former president, “recalling all unfounded accusations and abuses previously committed in the name of the fight against terrorism”.
Mourad Dhina is more explicit: “The information on which the Americans are based comes from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, two countries whose actions are regularly questioned by us. Similarly, our investigation on drones’ strikes in Yemen, which make thousands of victims, is not to the liking of the United States. “
Abdul Rahman Omeir al-Naimi is one of the founders of Alkarama, which was founded in 1994, on the basis of financial contributions by its members. The amount of these contributions is still unknown. “Our supporters want to remain anonymous, because in some countries, merely mentioning Alkarama’s support is punishable by imprisonment,” Mourad Dhina said.
The last time that Abdul Rahman Omeir al-Naimi came to Geneva was on December 6 for the presentation of the NGO’s award to Yemeni journalist Abulelah Shaye who investigated a drone attack on his country (5/12/2013). But this award was controversial, after Shaye published, a few days before the ceremony, a post on his Facebook page advocating terrorism and raising questions about “Jewish gangs controlling America”, according to our information.
The NGO was not aware of such publications until the day before the ceremony. “We then contacted Abulelah Shaye,” explains Mourad Dhina. However, the journalist who spent three years in prison may not currently leave Yemen. “We condemn these remarks. But Shaye is in a very fragile psychological situation. We wondered whether we should refrain from granting him the award, but we felt that his fight against drones was more important than this post.”
Simon Petite
Le Temps
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