Terrorist money laundering in the north?

THE NEW York trial of a suspected member of the al-Qaida terrorist network has revealed the scale of money laundering in the Turkish occupied north as well as its connections with the Islamic terror group led by Osama bin Laden.

According to the Athens newspaper Ethnos tis Kyriakis,Jamal Ahmed al Fadel, a Sudanese man accused of having links with al-Qaida, has told US authorities that his group had all kinds of banking conveniences in northern Cyprus and alluded to financial transactions between banks in Sudan and the north. The money was then transferred to other countries, Fadel said.

Ethnos said that in his statement, the suspect said that northern Cyprus was considered the best channel because: ” the market there is absolutely free and anyone can deposit money wherever they want and then transfer them directly to European companies” .

But the paper added that what really drew the attention of the American media, was al Fadel’s revelation that al-Qaida was ready to spend around $1.5 million for the acquisition of nuclear components.

The information was of particular interest to Russian authorities, who have repeatedly expressed concern over the financial transactions of Islamic and other militant groups in Russia and the Caucasus,

According to figures issued by the Turkish Cypriot regime, there are 35 onshore banks – mostly Turkish – in the north, as well as 27 offshore banks.

Investment interest into the north cannot be justified by its development track record or its growth rates, Ethnos pointed out.

Despite this, its currency reserves have increased exponentially between 1990 and 1994 from $89.8 million to $283.2 million.

On top of this, around 21 casinos operate in the north, which have aroused suspicion as potential money laundering establishments.