November 12, 2008 Treasury Designates the Union of Good Washington, DC-The U.S. Department of the Treasury today designated the Union of Good, an organization created by Hamas leadership to transfer funds to the terrorist organization. "Terrorist groups such as Hamas continue to exploit charities to radicalize vulnerable communities and cultivate support for their violent activities," said Stuart Levey, Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence. "The U.S. Government will continue to expose and undermine the activities of charities working on behalf of Hamas and other terrorist groups. At the same time, we are working with the charitable sector to expand the range of legitimate alternatives for providing charitable assistance to the Palestinian people." Union of Good was designated today under Executive Order 13224, which targets terrorists, terrorist organizations, and those providing financial, technological, or material support to terrorists, terrorist organizations, or acts of terrorism. Any assets the Union of Good holds under The leadership of Hamas created the Union of Good in late-2000, shortly after the start of the second Intifada, in order to facilitate the transfer of funds to Hamas. The Union of Good acts as a broker for Hamas by facilitating financial transfers between a web of charitable organizations--including several organizations previously designated under E.O. 13224 for providing support to Hamas--and Hamas-controlled organizations in the West Bank and Gaza. The primary purpose of this activity is to strengthen Hamas' political and military position in the West Bank and Among the primary financiers of Union of Good projects are several organizations designated pursuant to E.O. 13224 for providing support to Hamas and other terrorist groups, including the International Palestine Relief and Development Fund (Interpal), Al- Aqsa Foundation, Comite de Bienfaisance et de Secours aux Palestiniens (CBSP), the Association de Secours Palestiniens (ASP) of Switzerland, the Palestinian Association in Austria (PVOE), and the Sanabil Association for Relief and Development in Lebanon. The Union of Good facilitates the transfer of tens of millions of dollars a year to Hamas- managed associations in the Funds raised by the Union of Good affiliates have been transferred to Hamas-managed organizations in the West Bank and The Board members of the Union of Good include a West Bank Hamas member, and Abd alMajid al-Zindani, a Yemen-based Hamas fundraiser who was designated pursuant to E.O. 13224 in 2004 for providing support to al-Qaida. In 2006, Zindani delivered a fundraising speech at a Hamas conference in The Identifying Information UNION OF GOOD -30-
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