These indoctrines begin in kindergarten and continue through university level and operate summer camps, more than 100 of which are operated by the "Union of Good".  Some of these camps have paramilitary or even fully military activities intended to prepare the young for enlistment into the ranks of the various terrorist organizations.  Training at these camps include using guns to subdue an enemy, practicing capture, taking hostages, and workshops for home-made rockets, among other things.

A child at a Hamas summer camp, when asked what he wants to be when he grows up, replied, "I want to be a military man, a holy warrior, to liberate this land, because it is our and does not belong to anyone else."

Additionally, funds are given to family members of suicide bombings, funds are used for "feasts" at mosques and for food donations, it funds orphanages, healthcare clinics, soup kitchens and even sports leagues.

Today, the U.S. Treasury Department on Wednesday named an Islamic charity as a group aiding Hamas militants in the Middle East and prohibited Americans from dealing with the "Union of Good" organization.  The Treasury Department said that the Union of Good funnels money to Islamist fighters in the West Bank and Gaza, adding that the government will seize any funds in the United States controlled by the charity.

On the Treasury Department's web site there is an announcement allowing this action under and allowed via Executive Order 13224 blocking Terrorist Property put into effect on September 23, 2001. [PDF]

11/12/2008

The following entities have been added to the OFAC's SDN list:

UNION OF GOOD (a.k.a. 101 DAYS CAMPAIGN; a.k.a. CHARITY COALITION; a.k.a. COALITION OF GOOD; a.k.a. ETELAF AL-KHAIR; a.k.a. ETILAFU EL-KHAIR; a.k.a. I'TILAF AL-KHAIR; a.k.a. I'TILAF AL-KHAYR), P.O. Box 136301, Jeddah 21313, Saudia Arabia [SDGT]

[OFAC - Office of Foreign Assets Control]
[SDN - Specially Designated Nationals]
[SDGT - Specially Designated Global Terrorist]

It only took the Treasury Department four months after Israel announced the same, and six years with Israel outlawing the "Union of Good"  and Hamas da'wah institutions in 2002.  They both have probably had a good idea about the "Union of Good" sending funds to Hamas since late 2000, and certainly since 2001.  Why so long?  Well, that's a good question for which I don't have an answer for. 

Although the "Union of Good" was outlawed in Israel in February 2002, in July of this year, the Defense Minister of Israel, Ehud Barak, signed an order banning 36 global fundraising organizations to the "Union of Good" [PDF]  as Israel stepped up efforts to cut off flow of cash to Hamas government.  On that order was a list of 36 organizations with an entry of the following:  "23.  The Union of Good Lebanon - Dar Al Fatwait (Includes US Charitable Organization)" 

But by putting the "Union of Good" on the Treasury Departments list,  this makes it a criminal offense for U.S. persons to provide material support or resources to Foreign Terrorist Organization's ("FTOs") and requires financial institutions to block all funds in which FTOs or their agents have an interest, per Section 302 of the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996.

Among the types of businesses covered they this regulation, are banks, securities and commodities broker/dealers, investment companies, currency exchanges, issuers, redeemers, and cashiers of traveler's checks, checks, money orders, or similar instruments, credit card system operators, insurance companies, dealers in precious metals, stones or jewels, pawnbrokers, loan and finance companies, travel agencies, licensed money transmitters, telegraph companies, businesses engaged in vehicle sales, including automobile, airplane or boat sales, persons involved in real estate closings or settlements, and casinos.

Such "financial institutions" must notify OFAC Compliance about any blocked funds within ten days of blocking, otherwise they face civil (not criminal) penalties to be assessed against them in an amount equal  to $50,000 per violation or twice the amount which should have been blocked, whichever is greater.

The "Union of Good" was established in October 2000, shortly after the beginning of the last Palestinian Intifada against Israel.  It is comprised of 50 Islamic "charities", including Hamas and Hezbollah affiliated organizations.  The "Union of Good" was suppose to raise funds for only 101 days, but its initial success led the founders, mostly Hamas members, to maintain its operations to date.

The "Union of Good" is headed by Dr. Yussuf al-Qardawi, who is the source of spiritual and religious authority for Hamas and others in the Palestinian territories.  Al-Qardawi, who established and leads the Department of Islamic Law (Shari’a) at the Univeristy of Qatar and the Institute for Sunnah Research there, is also on the board of directors of the Al-Taqwa Bank, designated by the US as a terrorist funding organization in November 2001.

Al-Qardawi established legal justification for "financial jihad [al-jihad bil-mal]" in a lecture he gave in May 4, 2002 in the UAE.  According to him, "collecting money for the mujahideem (jihad fighters) was not a donation or a gift but a duty necessitated by the sacrifices they made for the Muslim nation."

To the left is part of a "Union of Good" table of shaheeds from 2002, including suicide bombers in Israeli cities.  It designates the allocations of funds to their families through the Hamas-affiliated Islamic "charitable society" Al-Tadhamun in Nablus. 

If you do not know what Hamas is, they are a LARGE Palestinian Muslim militant movement with origins in the late 1960s when it was started by Sheikh Ahmed Yassin.  It is important to remember that although Hamas is a Muslim based organization, this does not mean that all Muslim's are part of Hamas or terrorists.  Hamas is a fanatical organization that has it's own charter, a document that is independent from the Qur'an.  And in fact many Palestinians [Muslim] do want peace between them and Israel [Jewish].

Yassin established al-Mujamma' al-Islami in 1973 to coordinate the Muslim Brotherhood's political activities in Gaza.  Yassin founded Hamas as the Muslim Brotherhood's local political arm in December 1987, following the eruption of the first intifada, a Palestinian uprising against Israeli control of the West Bank and Gaza.  Hamas published its official charter in 1988.

Here are some highlights of the principles of Hamas as stated in their Covenant or Charter:

■  "Israel will exist and will continue to exist until Islam will obliterate it, just as it obliterated others before it."

■  "The Islamic Resistance Movement believes that the land of Palestine is an Islamic Waqf consecrated for future Moslem generations until Judgement Day.  It, or any part of it, should not be squandered:  it, or any part of it, should not be given up.

■  "There is no solution for the Palestinian question except through Jihad.  Initiatives, proposals and international conferences are all a waste of time and vain endeavors."

The first Hamas suicide bombing took place in April 1993.  Five months later, Yasir Arafat, the then-leader of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), and Yitzhak Rabin, then-prime minister of Israel, sealed the Oslo accords - an Israeli-Palestinian peace pact that eventually unraveled.  Rabin was assassinated by an Israeli right-wing in November 1995.  Arafat died in November 2004.

Hamas is believed to have killed more than five hundred people in more than 350 separate terrorist attacks since 1993 through suicide bombers, mortars, short-range rockets, and small arms fire.

SOURCES:

• Reuters
• yNet
• American Center for Democracy
• The Intelligence & Terrorism Information Center (IICC)
• IICC, Financing- July 8, 2008
• IICC, Training - August 21, 2008
• IICC, Summer Camps - August 24, 2008
• Department of the Treasury, OFAC Recent Actions
• Department of the Treasury, The Terrorism Sanctions [PDF] - This is actually very scary of how many people, groups and organizations are listed on here.  115 pages long.
• TheJANet [Cached version, retrieved on Nov 13, 2008]

A campaign aide said the 86-year-old Dunham died late Nov. 2nd at her home in Honolulu, and Obama was notified of his grandmother's death around 8 AM Monday morning [2am HI time].  That morning Obama appeared at a rally in Florida without making an announcement.  A written statement was issued around 4:30 PM, in the name of Obama and his sister, before he spoke at an evening rally in Charlotte.  The delay was intended to allow his sister, who was six hours behind in Hawaii, time to take care of a few details before news of the death became public.

When Obama made the announcement on Nov.3rd that his grandmother had died, a campaign spokesman declined to say when the service would be held, referring to the statement, which mentions a "small private ceremony to be held at a later date."  Obama's campaign said he will return to Honolulu sometime in December although they will not specify exactly when he will arrive.

So everyone seems to want to know why?  Well, first it's not uncommon for funerals to be held more than a week after the death of a Hawaii resident because of the time it takes to fly to the islands, Jerry Andrade, funeral home manager of Borthwick Mortuary stated, which is handling Dunham's arrangements.  And this would make sense since Obama's family is quite large, and lives pretty much all over the place. 

Secondly, Dunham has been cremated.  In an email, Maya Soetoro-Ng stated that Dunham's koa (wood) urn arrived on Election Day.  So again, the delay is not unusual.  Many times those that have been cremated do not have ceremonies for them until a later date.  The fact is, Dunham is not "on ice" as Debbie Schlussel has said.

Borthwick Mortuary in Hawaii is handling the arrangements.  Officials at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific have since been contacted by Borthwick Mortuary about holding a service for Madelyn Dunham, says Gene Castagnetti, the cemetery's director.

During a family vacation in August, Obama brought his family to the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific.  Obama and his children left two leis at niche No. 440, where the ashes of his grandfather Stanley Dunham are in an urn behind a bronze plaque.  Stanley Dunham was an Army sergeant in WWII; he died of prostate cancer in 1992.  Madelyn is eligible to be inurned here, alongside her husband.

Stanley Dunham's niche is large enough to hold another urn.  If the family decides on that arrangement, Sergeant Dunham's bronze plaque covering the niche would be removed and replaced with another that would include his wife's name, birthday and date of death.

There will be a public service for Dunham this upcoming Friday at the National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific at Punchbowl according to Gene Castagnetti, Borthwick cemetery's director.

Schlussel, you are out of line, simply because you chose to run your "fingers" to degrade instead of doing your job by accurately doing research before posting/publishing.  I don't care if you have millions of readers, I don't care how popular you are.  The fact of the matter is, you are WAY out of line, and make anyone look bad who is trying to prove points about Obama  with your inaccurate statements because you'd rather slam Obama instead of trying to do your damn job.  So go ahead and now slam me, a little nobody of a blogger, who shows you for what you really are, and took a whole 10 minutes to do a bit of searching to find information.  What are you going to do?  Whine about it?  Blog about it?  *SNORT*

ADDITIONAL SOURCES:

• Time
• Soetoro-Ng's email to the Hawaii Advertiser [PDF]
• The Wall Street Journal
• International Herald Tribune

Monday, November 10th, 2008  From Israel Today:

"Robert Malley,  a top Middle East advisor that US President-elect Barack Obama promised months ago would play no role in his administration due to ties to Hamas, has reportedly been sent out on the next administration's first diplomatic mission.

According to a report in Middle East Newsline, Obama dispatched Malley to Egypt and Syria late last week with a message that he intends to mend and bolster relations with both nations, and to give greater weight to their concerns regarding regional conflicts than did President George W. Bush.

During the Democratic Party primaries, Obama was lashed by critics for having Malley on his team after the latter admitted to being in regular contact with Hamas as part of his work with the International Crisis Group.

Obama spokesman Ben LaBolt quickly responded at the time that Mally had provided "informal advice to the campaign in the past," but insisted that he had "no formal role in the campaign and he will not play any role in the future."

Tuesday, November 11, 2008.  From FrontPage Mag:

History will record that Barack Obama's first act of diplomacy as America's president-elect took place two days after his election victory, when he dispatched his senior foreign-policy adviser, Robert Malley, to meet with Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and Syrian President Bashar al-Assad - to outline for them the forthcoming administration's Mideast policy vis-a-vis those nations.  An aide to Mally reports, "The tenor of the messages was that the Obama administration would take into greater account Egyptian and Syrian interests" than has President Bush.  The Bush administration, it should be noted, has rightly recognized Syria to be not only a chief supporter of the al Qaeda insurgency in Iraq, but also the headquarters of the terrorist organization Palestinian Islamic Jihad and the longtime sponsor of Hamas.  ... Yet unlike President Bush, Obama and Malley have called for Israel to engage in peace negotiations with Syria.

[...]

"...Mally has advised nations around the world to establish relationship with, and to send financial aid to, the Hamas-led Palestinian government in Gaza."

"... Malley contends that it is both unreasonable and unrealistic for Israel or Western nations to demand that Syria sever its ties with Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, or Iran.  Rather, he suggests that if Israel were to return the Golan Heights to Syrian control, Damascus would be inclined to pursue peace with Israel."

[...]

"It is notable that six months ago the Obama campaign and Malley hastily severed ties with one another after the Times of London reported that Malley had been meeting privately with Hamas leaders on a regular basis - something Obama had publicly pledged never to do."

"But indeed, within hours after Obama's election victory, Malley was back as a key player in the president-elect's team of advisors - on his way to Syria."

 

November 11, 2008.  From Newsbusters:

"News services in Israel are on fire with talk that Barack Obama has just sent a supporter of the terror group Hamas as his envoy to Syria and Egypt to relay news of his policies to come. " [...]

"As mentioned back in May, Malley reported that he held "regular meetings" with the Palestinian terror group Hamas causing Israelis quite a lot of heartburn.  To appease Israel's supporters in the U.S. at that time, the Obama camp threw Malley under the bus." [...]

"Yet despite claims that Malley would not have a "role in the future," now word has emerged that Malley was just sent to Egypt and Syria this week as an envoy for Barack Obama causing at least one harshly worded report in Israel to claim that Obama "lied" about Malley earlier this year. [...]

This should also make one wonder if Obama was telling the truth back in May?  And, if Malley has been hauled up from under the bus, does this make all the others Obama rolled over on his way to the White House suddenly back in the clear? [...]

So, can we or can we not believe a word that Obama said about any of those he felt obliged to distance himself from during the election?  Will we soon see a William Ayers touring the White House as a guest instead of a murderous bomber?  Will uncle Rev. Wright suddenly be back on the Christmas party invite list so he can see for himself where the AIDS epidemic to kill all blacks was planned?

BACKGROUND

May 09, 2008

According to a Times Online article, Barack Obama's Middle East policy advisor disclosed yesterday that he had held meeting with the militant Palestinian group Hamas - Obama promptly fired him.

Robert Malley told The Times that he had been in regular contact with Hamas, which controls Gaza and is listed by the US State Department as a terrorist organization.  "I've never hidden the fact that in my job with the International Crisis Group I meet with all kinds of people," Malley stated.

From the Chicago Sun-Times, Ben LaBolt stated, "Sen. Obama strongly opposes talking to Hamas, a terrorist group committed to Israel's destruction.  As president, he will work to isolate Hamas and target its resources, and rejects any dialogue until Hamas recognizes Israel, renounces terrorism, and abides by previous agreements."

July, 2008

Obama visited Israel and the West bank in July, meeting Israeli leaders and Abbas and traveling to an Israeli town that had been hit by Hamas rockets from Gaza.

August 05, 2008

Chicago attorney Mazen Asbahi, the Muslim-outreach coordinator to the Obama presidential campaign, after being appointed to the position for Muslim American affairs on July 25, was forced to resign from his volunteer position when questions arose over his alleged involvement in an Islamic investment fund that was believed to have links to Hamas.

The problem, reported by The Wall Street Journal on August 6 started when the WSJ emailed inquiries about Asbahi's background and then Asbahi tendered his resignation. The inquiries were based upon an internet newsletter "Global Muslim Brotherhood Daily Report" noted that:  "Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama has named Mazen Ashahi, a Chicago lawyer with ties to a financial organization close to the U.S. Muslim Brotherhood, as National Coordinator for Muslim American Affairs for his campaign."  The newsletter noted that Asbahi was listed as one of six trustees of Allied Asset Advisors Fund in a May 4, 2000 SEC filing.

Via ABC, according to Global Muslim Brotherhood Daily Report, that group was a "subsidiary of the North American Islamic Trust (NAIT) and adviser to the Down Jones Islamic Fund, both affiliated with the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)," referring to its own February 2007 report [PDF], "EXTREMISM AND THE ISLAMIC SOCIETY OF NORTH AMERICA (ISNA)."

Part of that report details the role NAIT played in an ideological struggle in a Bridgeview, IL, mosque, and the fundamentalist imam, Jamal Said, who ultimately won that battle.  Said served along with Asbahi as a trustee of Allied Asset Advisors Fund.

Said was also one of the many listed as an "unindicted co-conspirator or joint venturer" named in the US government's unsuccessful racketeering trial The US vs. the Holy Land Foundation, which ended in a mistrail, formerly the largest Muslim charity in the US, which the US government accused of  being a front-group to fundraise for Hamas.

Obama had no apparent ties to Said.  Obama named Asbahi to do Muslim outreach for his campaign, and Asbahi had ties to Said - and to the Islamic Society of North America, which was also named as an "unindicted co-conspirator or joint venturer" in the Holy Land Foundation case.

Additionally, the newsletter also asserted that Asbahi had been listed as a speaker for ISNA and has spoken at ISNA conferences.

Wednesday, November 5th, 2008

According to World Net Daily:

"The Hamas terrorist group believes the election of Sen. Barack Obama is an "historic victory" for the world and an opportunity to change U.S. foreign policy toward engagement with America's foes, Ahmed Youself, Hamas' chief political adviser in the Gaza Strip, told WND.

Youself, speaking by cell phone from Gaza, said Hamas is drafting a letter of congratulation to be sent tomorrow directly to Obama.  He said the current draft of the letter praises the president-elect as "another John F. Kennedy, or great Roosevelt." ...

"This is a historic day, a turning point.  I think this is the very first time in history that one country's election concerned everyone everywhere all over [the] world," said Youself.  "Everybody is looking forward to Obama's change, for a change in the U.S policy, particularly in the Israeli-Palestinian equation, which is the mother of all conflicts."

Youself told WND he believes an Obama administration will be more willing to engage in dialogue with Hamas.

Friday, November 7th, 2008

Hamas Gaza strongman Mahmoud Zahar said he hoped Obama's victory would open a new page in relations between the U.S. and the Muslim world.  But he said he did not expect the U.S. to talk to Hamas immediately.

Saturday, NOVEMBER 8th, 2008

In an AP report, Hamas was stated to be ready to open talks with Barack Obama the group's leader said in an interview broadcast on Saturday.  Khaled Mashall said that Hamas is ready for dialogue with Obama and his new administration "on the basis that the American administration respects our rights and our options."  "The American administration, if they want to deal with the region, Palestine and the Arab-Israel conflict, they have no other option than deal with Hamas because we are a real force on the ground, effective," Mashall told Sky News from Damascus, Syria.

Denis McDonough, senior foreign policy advisor to Obama, said Hamas had to change its policies before it could engage in any talks.  "President-elect Obama said throughout the campaign that he will only talk with Hamas if it renounces terrorism, recognizes Israel's right to exist and agrees to abide by past agreements," McDonough said.

Tuesday, November 11th, 2008

From Al Bawaba:

Dr. Ahmad Yousef, a political adviser to the prime minister of the Hamas-led government, Ismail Haniyah, revealed Tuesday that prior to the US president elections, a secret meeting was held between senior officials from the Palestinian movement and President-elect Barack Obama's advisors in the Gaza Strip.

"We were in contact with a number of Obama's aides through the Internet, and later met with some of them in Gaza, but they advised us not to reveal this information as it may influence the elections or become manipulated by McCain's campaign", Yousef said in an interview with London-based Arabic-language newspaper Al-Hayat,  published Tuesday.

According to Yousuf, Hamas' contact with Obama's advisors was ongoing, adding that he personally had friendly relations with a few of Obama's advisers whom he had met when he lived in the US.  "Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh will draft a congratulatory letter to Obama for his victory in the elections," added Yousef.

"The policy Obama will instate in the Middle East will differ from that of his predecessor George W. Bush, although it is clear that the region and the Palestinian issue will not be at the top of his agenda," Yousef told Al-Hayat, "[Obama] will focus more on the economic crisis, Iraq and Afghanistan."

From Globe and Mail:

Speaking from Gaza, today, Ayman abu Leilah, a spokesman for Mr. Yousef, confirmed these statements as true, adding that the most recent meeting took place in early October "one month before the election."  He said Mr. Yousef had first met Obama people some years ago when he was studying in the United States.

Mark Regev, foreign press spokesman in the Israeli Prime Minister's Office, said the government had "absolutely no confirmation" that such a meeting ever took place, and said he would not comment on what they considered only a hypothetical situation.