George Galloway
Attorney General Eric Holder
"Rules on charitable giving have made it harder for Muslims to fulfill their religious obligation. That's why I'm committed to working with American Muslims to ensure that they can fulfill zakat,"
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2009/06/05/2009-06-05_obama_gives_a_little_to_muslim_charities.html#ixzz0HgpCJJTK&C
Tucked away in President Obama's speech in Cairo this week was the above reference to American Muslim charities, which have come under scrutiny from time to time. It also comes on the heels of the sentencing of leaders of the Holy Land Foundation to lengthy prison terms as a result of the diversion of charitable funds to terrorist organizations.
So it appears that under Obama and the Holder Justice Department, there will be a relaxation in government scrutiny into the activities of Muslim charities and where the money contributed winds up. This is unfortunate in my view because we are witnessing presently a fundraising drive (Viva Palestina) in North America directed to Gaza (which is governed by Hamas-designated as a terror organization by the US). This drive is being led by British MP George Galloway. I was present during a May 21 appearance at the University of California at Irvine, in which Galloway passed a box around for money to be dropped in for Gaza. This very fundraiser (Viva Palestina) is the subject of a letter from the Anti-Defamation League to Attorney General Eric Holder asking the Justice Department to investigate this drive for any possible violation of US laws. Will Holder order an investigation? In light of Obama's statement in Cairo, that would seem to be in doubt.
No one wants to cut off legitimate charitable contributions by Muslims in America and no one wants to cut off genuine life-sustaining supplies to Gazans in light of their current difficulty. However, if cash collected by Galloway in the US is going into the hands of Hamas, that is a different story. If there are other Holy Land Foundations out there, that must be monitored. Hopefully, the Department of Justice will give the necessary scrutiny to Viva Palestina's fundraising drive in the US to ensure compliance with US laws.
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