News
The Charity and Security Network monitors U.S. and foreign government activities and a wide range of news sources to identify developments in national security policy that impact American charities and foundations. We collect and disseminate this information - with a focus on its impact on civil society and nonprofit organizations.
News
Eight Year Battle for Removal from UN Terrorism Blacklist Succeeds
Eight years after being acquitted of all terrorism related charges, on May 7, 2012 a Tunisian resident of Italy was removed from the United Nations’ al-Qaida terrorism blacklist. Kamel Darraji had been kept on the list by the U.S. and Italian governments on the basis that he was connected with al-Qaida, despite a lack of evidence linking him to the group. Many observers say Darraji ’s ordeal reveals major flaws with the entire UN blacklisting process, violating basic human rights and failing to provide any redress if an individual or organization is wrongfully listed.
MEK Remains On Terror List
A decision by the State Department about removing an Iranian dissident group from the U.S. list of foreign terror groups could be made within 60 days, a Justice Department lawyer told a federal court on May 8, 2012. Speaking at the hearing before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, lawyers for the Mujahedeen-e-Khalq (MEK) argued that the State Department must comply with a lower court's previous order from 2010 and make a decision on the group’s status. Despite its designation as a Foreign Terrorist Organization by the U.S. in 1997, the MEK has the support of many prominent former U.S. officials who are being paid to speak out against the group's listing.
Crises in Africa Showcase Complexity of Humanitarian Access in Conflict Zones
Several regions of Africa face significant man-made and natural disasters that are complicated by armed conflict and the presence of terrorist organizations. According to UN High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres, several humanitarian crises coupled with the global economic downturn has created a “nightmare scenario” across the large continent. Regions like the Sahel and Horn of Africa have been confronted with severe food insecurity, while areas such as Sudan and Somalia have also faced violent armed conflicts.
In some cases, aid agencies are hampered by overly broad U.S. laws that make it a crime for charities to negotiate access to vulnerable civilians living on territory controlled by a terrorist organization. This has resulted in diminished aid to Somalia during the peak of its famine in 2011. Without changes in legal rules for U.S. charities, the same problem could arise again in large portions of Africa in the summer of 2012.
House Subcommittee Recommends Extending Time for PVS Pilot, Requiring NGO Input
The time allowed for the State Department and United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to begin a pilot Partner Vetting System (PVS) will be extended from the current Oct. 1, 2012 deadline if a provision in the appropriations bill approved by the House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and Related Programs is approved by the full House and the Senate. The Full House Appropriations Committee will consider the bill in mid-May, and the Senate is expected to agree to the extension of time. The language also requires consultations with nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and a report to Congress after completion of the pilot. It is hoped the additional time and consultations will result in major adjustments to the PVS, which has been heavily criticized by U.S. nonprofits.
Favorable Settlement in Case of Shut Down Charity KindHearts
On May 1, 2012, lawyers for KindHearts for Charitable Humanitarian Development, the Ohio-based charity shut down “pending investigation” by the Treasury Department in February 2006, announced a settlement agreement with Treasury ending the litigation on terms favorable to the charity. In 2009 the federal district court for the Northern District of Ohio ruled that the process Treasury used to shut the charity down while investigating alleged ties to terrorism violated the constitution, and ordered further proceedings on what remedy Treasury should provide. The settlement ends the litigation by allowing KindHearts to pay its debts and distribute the remaining funds among a list of approved charities before it dissolves. At that point Treasury will remove KindHearts from its terrorist list and pay its attorneys fees. Neither side admitted to any wrongdoing.
Afghanistan IG: Security Contractors Screening in Afghanistan Inadequate (SPOT)
U.S. Begins Process for Implementing Universal Periodic Review Recommendations
The Department of State (State) announced on March 16, 2012 the first steps the United States will take toward implementing the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) recommendations. State announced the creation of 10 working groups to oversee the implementation, with each group focusing on a different theme from the recommendations, including “Civil Rights and Racial and Ethnic Discrimination” and “National Security.” The U.S.
WikiLeaks: Private Intelligence Company Paid to Monitor Activists’ Activities
On Feb. 27, 2012, WikiLeaks began releasing emails from Stratfor, a private intelligence firm based in Texas, that indicate the company was monitoring the legal activities of political groups around the world. The emails reveal a pattern of conduct that is designed to intimidate and harass activists, thus effectively denying the rights to free speech and peaceful protest. This is the second release of previously confidential material exposed by Wikileaks. In September 2011, a searchable archive of over 250,000 unredacted U.S. State Department cables became available on the internet.
Former Fed Informant Now Suing FBI
A former FBI informant who infiltrated several California mosques in 2006 has joined the American Civil Liberties Union’s (ACLU) lawsuit against the FBI for its controversial spying program, according to the Guardian on March 20, 2012. This and other incidents such as the NYPD's secret CIA-backed intelligence gathering operation aimed at innocent Muslim-Americans in the New York and New Jersey area appear to indicate that law enforcement is unfairly targeting people based on their religious beliefs. Monteilh agrees, saying, “The way the FBI conducts their operations, It is all about entrapment … I know the game, I know the dynamics of it. It’s such a joke, a real joke. There is no real hunt. It’s fixed.”
Treasury Investigating Former U.S. Officials’ Advocacy for Terrorist Group
The Department of Treasury is investigating payments to three former top-ranking government officials for speaking on behalf of a group on the U.S. terrorist list. The three are among nearly two dozen prominent former officials who have received up to hundreds of thousands of dollars in speaking fees in exchange for their efforts on behalf of the People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK). Additionally, a current State Department Ambassador has used these contacts to send messages to MEK representatives. While it remains unclear where the money originated and how much each official received, the payments and contact may violate the federal prohibition on providing “material support” to a listed terrorist group.
