Exclusive: Boston, Terror Funding and the MSA

Thirty plus years ago, mention terror funding in Boston and the discussion would most likely center around donation jars found in many Irish pubs labeled “Irish Relief”  –  dollars taking a roundabout route to the IRA.

Today, Islamic fund-raising has taken the Boston limelight with much of the money ending up in the pockets of various jihadist terror groups.  Instead of pubs, funding sources include zakah from the 19 plus mosques within a 5 mile radius of Boston proper along with charity entertainment events.  One of the fund raising organizers is Islamic Relief USA (IRUSA).

IRUSA’s activity in the Boston area is significant, with various events promoted as humanitarian relief efforts and coordinated primarily through the Islamic Society of Boston.

Founded in 1993, IRUSA is the U.S. branch of Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW).  While claiming to be an independent affiliate of IRW, IRUSA sends a significant amount of raised capitol to IRW’s coffers.  Money Jihad and The Clarion Project offer some excellent research describing the relationship between the two groups.  The Clarion Project article by Ryan Mauro (Jan 2013) also details the connection between the Muslim Brotherhood and various terror support groups.

In a August 2006 posting, Debbie Schlussel describes one IRUSA event she attended, summer 2004 in Dearborn, Michigan:

An Islamic Relief fundraising dinner I attended in summer 2004 in Dearborn, Michigan, was chilling. It was just after Americans Nicholas Berg and Paul Johnson were beheaded by Muslims.

The evening’s “entertainment” consisted of young boys–some apparently as young as seven–simulating beheadings and shootings of other young boys who donned the American, Israeli, and British flags. Then they put red scarves over their heads to symbolize blood . . . and no head.

Afterward, they took off the flags and stomped on them.

Almost every Islamic leader in town was there, clapping in ecstasy. So was U.S. Congressman John Conyers, who will run the House Judiciary Committee if Democrats regain control of Congress.

In light of the recent Boston bombing, media speculation is intent on focusing on a “lone wolf” scenario or  direct foreign link to explain the reasoning and support.   As we noted in one of our earlier articles,  the Islamic jihad is not limited by sovereign borders.  It is a global movement with Islamic ideology being the common denominator.

With the recent arrest of two suspects from Kazakhstan, the “lone wolf” theory is not very credible and a very hard look at IRW/IRUSA needs to be made.  From an Oct 13, 2005 article in The Guardian:

Russia accuses Birmingham charity of aiding terror

The directors of Russia’s state security services have accused a Birmingham charity, Islamic Relief, of supporting terrorism in Chechnya and urged Britain to “surrender” two prominent figures who are living in London.

During the delegation’s first official visit to the UK, Arkady Yedelev, the Russian deputy interior minister, accused Islamic Relief of providing financial aid to terrorist groups. “We have specific documentary evidence of finances coming into Russia into the accounts of leaders of terrorist organisations in Chechnya.”

Mr Yedelev also said Moscow wanted Boris Berezovsky and Akhmed Zakaev to be “surrendered”. “We have factual evidence about their direct and indirect links to and participation in starting armed conflict and inspiring civilian unrest,” he said.

IRW/IRUSA’s activity in Boston and connection to terrorist groups, including those in Chechnya,  will hopefully have investigators scrutinizing the group against Tamerlan Tsarnaev’s travels and the involvement of  the two student suspects from Kazakhstan.   

As with most Muslim Brotherhood front/affiliated groups, IRW/IRUSA places a heavy emphasis on using youth groups such as the Muslim Student’s Association as volunteers. 

The below photo is of IRUSA youth volunteers from the 2011 “Songs for the Children“ event held at the Sheraton Boston Hotel.

Among those in the group shot are:

LEFT – Ahmad Nassri, current President of MSA UMass Dartmouth*
RIGHT – Yousef Abdallah, Northeast Operations Manager of Islamic Relief USA

Ahmad Nassri is the same individual that we identified as being interviewed by multiple media outlets as a college friend/fellow student of Boston bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.  Nassri’s standing as President of MSA UMass Dartmouth is never mentioned in the interviews, with the exception of one with Reuters.

It is quite a coincidence that he and his cousin Bassel Nasri appear repeatedly as the “college friend/fellow student”.  Groups and organizations  maintain damage control by having a single source for media information.  Nassri stated in at least one interview that  Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was not a member of the MSA, but Nassri’s multiple, controlled appearances indicate this may not be the case.

Nassri did provided a notable comment when interviewed  by “60 minutes” that makes one wonder about who his associates really are:

“If someone a few days ago told me that one of my friends was responsible for the bombs, bombing in Boston, I would’ve named off at least 90 percent of everyone that I know before I would’ve said Dzhokhar.”

Considering his photo with Yousef Abdallah, he may have a point.

Sidenote: as of this writing the MSA UMass Dartmouth Facebook page identified by the Daily Caller’s Charles C. Johnson was not available for viewing

Related articles

• Boston Bombing: MSA, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and media failure (culturaljihad.wordpress.com)