◆ SpookStack

oo ALL INFORMATION CONTAINED oo @ HEREIN IS UNCLASSIFIED # 199 #1006600-23-2006 By 60309 Auc [2 . ; TAM/MLT/CLS fo U.S. Department of Justice f Federal Bureau of Investigation In Reply, Please Refer to f . July 18, 2003 File No Allegations of Al Qaeda Trafficking in Conflict Diamonds Executive Summary In November 2001, the Washington Post initiated a series of articles linking the al Qaeda terrorist network to diamond trafficking in West Africa. According to the media reporting, al Qaeda operatives, using aliases and based in Monrovia, Liberia, reaped millions of dollars from 1999 to 2001 through the sale of diamonds mined by the Revolutionary United Front (RUF). Reporting on this issue continues amid the current crisis in Liberia. The FBI's Terrorist Financing Operations Section (TFOS), in concert with other agencies, has endeavored to determine the validity of these allegations. FBI efforts consisted of investigation in the U.S. and several foreign countries including Ghana, Belgium, Sierra Leone, and Burkina Faso. During this comprehensive investigation, more than 25 individuals ranging from former high-ranking RUF rebels to diamond dealers responsible for exporting an estimated 80% of the diamonds mined in Sierra Leone were interview. None of the individuals interviewed were aware of any al Qaeda diamond buying from the RUF-controlled areas as alleged by the media. Several countries also conducted investigation into al Qaeda's alleged diamond trafficking activities in West Africa. TFOS met with several law enforcement and intelligence officials from various countries mentioned in the media reports. Based on the results of their independent investigations, these officials found that al Qaeda fugitives were not involved with the trafficking of conflict diamonds from Sierra Leone. The Belgian Federal Police investigated and are aiding the prosecution of a weapons for diamonds transaction involving the parties the media contends dealt with al Qaeda. The witnesses to this investigation denied that al Qaeda's operatives were involved with diamond trafficking in the region during 2000 through 2001. Furthermore, numerous witness have identified the alleged al Qaeda aliases as actual individuals from Senegal involved in the diamond trade of West Africa. Lastly, the FBI, and others in the U.S. Intelligence Community, have interrogated numerous detainees believed to have Significant financial knowledge of al Qaeda finances. These detainees specifically denied that al Qaeda used diamonds as a funding mechanism to support terrorism. This document contains neither recommendations nor conclusions of the FBI. It 1s the property of the FBI and 1s loaned to your agency; it and its contents are not to be distributed outside your agency.