A U.S. diplomat in Pakistan accused Saudi and Gulf groups of bankrolling Islamic extremists in a cable revealed by WikiLeaks Sunday. Pakistan's Dawn newspaper reported Bryan Hunt, then consul in Lahore, sent the message to the State Department in November 2008, citing local officials and his visits to south Punjab.
Hunt wrote, "Financial support estimated at nearly 100 million USD annually was making its way to Deobandi and Ahl-i-Hadith clerics in south Punjab from organizations in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, ostensibly with the direct support of those governments."
He said local informants had described a "sophisticated jihadi recruitment network" to him.
Muslim "charities" funding a network of radical mosques and madrassas preyed on "families with multiple children" and "severe financial difficulties," recruiting their sons into schools and paying bounties for them, Hunt wrote.
At least 92 people have been killed in Israeli attacks across the Gaza Strip as desperate...
Vladimir Putin’s economy minister has warned that Russia is “on the verge” of recession as he...
Israel's primary focus is now its war with Iran, but Israeli troops are still holding territory...
