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Turkish Charity Tied to Flotilla Has History of Clashes

(Washington Post) Mary Beth Sheridan - For years, the Istanbul-based charity IHH has battled allegations of extremist ties. French counterterrorism magistrate Jean-Louis Bruguiere wrote that the charity's members planned in the 1990s to fight in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Chechnya. Calls were made in 1996 from IHH's headquarters to an al-Qaeda guesthouse in Milan. And Bruguiere testified during a 2001 trial related to a plot to bomb Los Angeles International Airport that IHH was involved in weapons trafficking. The group takes in $100 million a year in donations, said Huseyin Oruc, the group's vice president. Analysts said that reflects the generosity of religious Muslims in Turkey who have benefited from the country's economic boom. IHH's financial heft transformed a more modest effort by European and U.S.-based pro-Palestinian groups to challenge the economic blockade of Gaza. Israeli officials have speculated that the government of Prime Minister Erdogan helped promote the flotilla. In a ceremony before the ships set sail, IHH's president, Bulent Yildirim, thanked supporters - including the governing AKP party. With an Islamic-rooted party in power, Muslim organizations "have found a more congenial and welcoming atmosphere in which to work," said Ilter Turan, a political scientist at Istanbul Bilgi University.
2010-06-11 09:06:52
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