From the Counterterrorism Blog:
In CNN's coverage of the current battles between Israel and the terrorist group Hezbollah, CNN has provided a list of "aid groups" to assist civilians in the "Mideast crisis". One of these groups is the Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) group - which has been reported to have disturbing links to Jihadism and recently documented fund-raising links to US State Department-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO) Hamas.
Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) is an international Islamic aid organization that was founded in United Kingdom, in 1984, by Dr Hany El Banna. It was reported in 1999 that IRW's main UK office received $50,000 from a Canadian group that "the U.S. Treasury Department called 'a(n Osama) bin Laden front.' Moscow's Obshchaya Gazeta has reported that IRW has collected and funneled millions of dollars to the Chechen terrorist rebels in Russia, who have ties to al Qaeda.
In 2004, IRW had a fundraiser at Britain's Birmingham Central Mosque, which has historically been a source of jihad recruitment, including meetings of Al-Muhajiroun and reported recruitment of UK suicide bombers who attacked Tel Aviv in 2003.
Hat tip: NB reader "Baldy."
