◆ SpookStack

@ g : Allegations Relating to al Qaeda’s Trafficking in Conflict Diamonds In November 2001, the Washington Post initiated a series of articles linking the al Qaeda terrorist network to rough diamond trafficking in the war-torn West African country of Sierra Leone. These articles quoted several unidentified U.S. and European intelligence officials as well as unidentified sources who allegedly had direct knowledge that al Qaeda reaped millions of dollars, from 1999 to 2001, from the sale of diamonds mined by the Revolutionary United Front (RUF), the rebel army of Sierra Leone. According to the media reports, Aziz Nassour, Samih Ossaily, and Ibrahim Bah, acted as conduits for an extensive pre-9/11 diamond buying operation by al Qaeda operatives Ahmed Khalfan Ghailani and Fazul Abdullah Mohammed, who were using aliases. This allegedly resulted in the purchase of 20 million dollars in gems by al Qaeda operatives. The media reports also claimed that the Presidents of Liberia and Burkina Faso were paid bribes to assist and serve as hosts for the al Qaeda terrorists during their diamond buying operation. Since the initial Washington Post report, several other media sources, including the BBC and the NGO Global Witness, have published or aired additional reports regarding this alleged al Qaeda/conflict diamond connection. Several of these reporters and organizations have interconnected relationships and have extensively shared sources and materials on this topic. On April 17, 2003, Global Witness, a London based NGO, published ninety-nine page report entitled: "For a Few Dollar$ More - How al Qaeda moved into the diamond trade." This report followed the initial reporting by the Washington Post but added more in-depth background and details, along with supporting documents. This report's principal author and investigator, Alex Yearsley, told the FBI that his intent for this report was to draw attention to the conflict diamond crisis in West Africa and thus, push forward the Kimberly Process.! ~- Even as recent as July 4, 2003, the Washington Post continued its original reporting stating that "(Liberian President Charles} Taylor sold some of the [conflict] diamonds to al Qaeda in 2000 and 2001 as the terrorist organization moved its cash to commodities in advance of the Sept. 11 attacks, according toa year- long investigation by European law enforcement agencies." \ 4 1 The Kimberly Process is a multi-nation agreement that requires certifications for the legitimate trading of diamonds 1n an attempt to end the funding of rebel groups through the International smuggling of the gems. REQ 5-4a thru e 000000082