WASHINGTON, 7 September — The United States and Saudi Arabia have frozen the assets of Saudi national Wael Hamza Julaidan, for his alleged association with Osama Bin Laden, the US Treasury Department announced yesterday.
Julaidan, who was involved in Saudi charitable activities in Afghanistan, Bosnia and Kosovo, has run the Rabita Trust Islamic charity since February 2000, it said.
Just days after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on US landmarks, for which Bin Laden has been blamed, Rabita Trust was added to the list of terrorist financiers and its assets were frozen.
Julaidan’s name was included in a civil suit filed recently in Washington by more than 1,000 relatives of people killed in last year’s attacks.
“Today’s action is important in that it demonstrates the commitment of both the United States and Saudi Arabia to go after high-impact targets in our war against terrorist financing,” said Treasury Under Secretary for Enforcement Jimmy Gurule, adding that Washington had received “unprecedented cooperation” from Riyadh on the matter.
The Treasury Department said the 44-year-old Julaidan had been named by Bin Laden and one of his top lieutenants now in US custody, Abu Zubaydah, as a known associate.
The department accused that Julaidan had headed several organizations that had provided logistical support for Bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda network.
Julaidan had worked as the head of Saudi Red Crescent Society in Afghanistan and supervised the projects of the Riyadh-based Higher Commission for Collecting Donations in Bosnia and Kosovo.
Born in Saudi Arabia in January 1958, Julaidan has fought with Bin Laden against the Soviets in Afghanistan in the 1980s, Washington says.
To date, the United States has frozen the assets of some 236 people, businesses and organizations designated as terrorist financiers. In all, Washington and its allies have blocked more than $112 million in assets.
