Former Al Qaeda Commander Says Saudi Arabia Funded Their Operations In The Balkans

Now, one has to consider that this witness at a U.N. terrorist war crimes trial IS an al Qaeda commander that targeted Westerners in the Balkans but it does help focus the spotlight on what most of us have known for years in that Saudi Arabia has always been a major sponsor of terror in this world. Of course, the Saudis have denied it for many years. Here's a bit from the news report at the Philadelphia Inquirer:

But that assertion is disputed by a former al-Qaeda commander who testified in a United Nations war-crimes trial that his unit was funded by the Saudi High Commission for Relief of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Ali Ahmed Ali Hamad, the former al-Qaeda fighter, gave the same account to The Inquirer in an interview in this struggling city in the central Balkans.
"Because it was the biggest charity, [the commission] helped the mujaheddin the most," Hamad said, adding that it had provided "everything a person needed to exist."

What the Saudis did was to cover this all up at the time as a Saudi "charity" - that way they could funnel tens of millions into the area under the guise of "relief" yet arming and supporting the terrorists in the area. Look at this part of the article:

He contends that the Saudi High Commission, an agency of the Saudi government, and other Islamist charities supported al-Qaeda-led units that committed atrocities. Mujaheddin units, he said, recruited fighters, prepared for battle, and financed their operations in the Balkans.
He said the Saudi High Commission had poured tens of millions of dollars into mujaheddin units led by al-Qaeda operatives who fought with Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan.
Money intended for humanitarian relief bought weapons and other military supplies.

I'm sure the Saudis will be quick to deny all of this and point out that they are supposedly an enemy of al Qaeda but at the same time, these allegations shouldn't be that difficult to prove true. There has to be a paper trail a mile wide. The informant here goes on to allege that the Saudis also helped the terrorist group with false identifications and falsified vehicle plates that allowed them to move freely through border checkpoints. Seems to me, those vehicle plates would be an easy thing to check out.

It would be welcome to finally see the Saudis nailed to the wall. We all still remember the sums of money they sent to the Palestinians as "relief" to the families of suicide bombers - as if that was compensation for their loss and NOT an incentive to continue the suicide bombing. Unfortunately, a former al Qaeda commander here is not exactly the kind of ideal canary we would like to see singing about this.

A former al-Qaeda fighter accuses a Saudi charity

DOBOJ, Bosnia - For years, Saudi Arabia flatly denied it had provided money and logistical support for Islamist militant groups that attacked Western targets.
But that assertion is disputed by a former al-Qaeda commander who testified in a United Nations war-crimes trial that his unit was funded by the Saudi High Commission for Relief of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Ali Ahmed Ali Hamad, the former al-Qaeda fighter, gave the same account to The Inquirer in an interview in this struggling city in the central Balkans.
"Because it was the biggest charity, [the commission] helped the mujaheddin the most," Hamad said, adding that it had provided "everything a person needed to exist."
Hamad, 37, is expected to be called as a witness in a lawsuit filed by Cozen O'Connor alleging that Saudi Arabia and affiliated charities financed al-Qaeda and other groups as they geared up for the 9/11 attacks.
As a convicted terrorist, Hamad is an imperfect witness.
During the Balkans war, from 1992 to 1995, jihadists from North Africa and the Middle East were accused of atrocities against indigenous Serbs and Croatians.
Hamad admits having done "bad things" as an al-Qaeda fighter, and he is serving a 10-year sentence in a Bosnian jail for his role in a 1997 Mostar bombing.
Yet Hamad's account of his time in the Balkans went largely uncontroverted during the U.N. trial, where he was a prosecution witness.
He contends that the Saudi High Commission, an agency of the Saudi government, and other Islamist charities supported al-Qaeda-led units that committed atrocities. Mujaheddin units, he said, recruited fighters, prepared for battle, and financed their operations in the Balkans.
He said the Saudi High Commission had poured tens of millions of dollars into mujaheddin units led by al-Qaeda operatives who fought with Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan.
Money intended for humanitarian relief bought weapons and other military supplies.
The charities also provided false identification, employment papers, diplomatic plates and vehicles that permitted Islamist fighters to enter the country and pass easily through military checkpoints, Hamad said.
Several charity offices, including those of the Saudi High Commission, were led by former mujaheddin or al-Qaeda members, at least one of whom trained with Hamad in an al-Qaeda camp in Afghanistan, he said.
Like other al-Qaeda fighters, Hamad said, he was an employee of the Saudi High Commission for a time and traveled through the war zone in commission vehicles with diplomatic plates.