Islamic Relief resumes operations in Gaza
Categories: Latest News
Sunday December 14 2014
BBC News, The Guardian and the third sector news site, Civil Society, cover the audit report commissioned by the British Muslim charity, Islamic Relief Worldwide, after it was accused by the Israeli Defence Minister, Moshe Ya’alon, of funnelling funds to ‘Hamas-controlled organisations’, a charge denied by Islamic Relief.
The charity has now released the findings of an external audit report which, though finding some slight irregularities, found “absolutely no evidence” of any link to terrorism.
Islamic Relief has already suffered as a result of the allegations, pulling out of dispersal of funds generated by the Disasters Emergency Committee Gaza Appeal earlier this year until it had had the chance to rebut the claims that it was abusing its charitable status.
A spokesperson for Islamic Relief said, “As a responsible organisation we are looking into this matter thoroughly to ensure that our processes for aid delivery have been followed.”
It is not the first time the charity has faced unwarranted accusations by the Israeli government. In 2006, its Head of Operations in Gaza was detained and later deported by the Israeli authorities for providing “support and assistance to Hamas’s infrastructure”.
Islamic Relief’s chief executive, Mohamed Ashmawey, told the Guardian that the charity had spent “hundreds of thousands of pounds” to “clear its name”. With the external audit done, the charity is intent on returning to Gaza to carry deliver essential humanitarian aid.
The accusations are part of a wider trend in demonisation suffered by British Muslim charities with Peter Oborne and Alex Delmar-Morgan relating the long experience of Interpal of fighting libellous campaigns.
Islamic Relief was recently placed on a proscribed organisations list by the United Arab Emirates alongside a host of civil society organisations. A move which prompted the White House to issue a statement distancing itself from the inference of the Muslim Brotherhood and linked organisations were “terrorist” organisations stating it had “not seen credible evidence that the Muslim Brotherhood has renounced its decades-long commitment to non-violence.”
The role of the Charity Commission in placing a disproportionately high number of British Muslim charities under statutory investigation has also faced criticism for its lack of objective criteria and transparency.