Debbie Schlussel: Hezbollah U.S.A, Part II: Al Mabarat Charitable Organization, Tax-Funded Hezbollah on Our Shores

By Debbie Schlussel

Why do the FBI, ICE, and the Justice Department continue to allow an obvious Hezbollah charity to operate on our shores?

In May, I wrote--twice! (here and here)--about Hezbollah financier Talal Chahine and his contributions to Hezbollah front charity Al Mabarrat Association. I also wrote about its Dearborn, Michigan affiliate, Al Mabarat Charitable Organization. I had all the details and have reposted them below. (Yesterday, I went to an Al Mabarrat related event, yesterday, and will post about that, later.)

Al Mabarrat's Website Features Hezbollah Spiritual Leader Fadlallah

Now, over two months later, on a counter-terrorism site, an over-rated "terrorism expert" claims to have discovered both Al Mabarrat Association, the Hezbollah charity, its U.S. affiliate Al Mabarat Charitable Organization, and donor Talal Chahine. But the terrorism-expert-with-no-clothing can't even get the names of either organization right and, since he doesn't speak or read Arabic (and apparently, not English, either), incorrectly claims the charity's website is no longer online. It's still there.

Culled from my May posts (here and here), here's all the info you need on Al Mabarrat Association and its Dearborn, Michigan affiliate, Al Mabarat Charitable Organization:

While the IRS has a photo of Chahine with Hezbollah spiritual leader Mohammed Fadlallah, Chahine's contributions were not directly to Hezbollah, but to Al Mabarrat Association. It has a Dearborn, Michigan affiliate Al Mabarat Charitable Organization (note the U.S. version uses one "r", the Lebanese version--two "r"s). Al Mabarrat is clearly an open front for Hezbollah, and has Fadlallah's photo on its website front and center. Despite that, U.S. Attorney Stephen Murphy III and the IRS refuse to prosecute the U.S. branch of the charity for apparently violating the law and apparently donating the money to Hezbollah. And the State Department and Office of Foreign Assets Control and the Department of Treasury refuses to put either the Lebanese or American charity on the State Department terrorist list. On the contrary, the U.S. government allows it to operate and has licensed it as a 501(c)(3) tax-deductible organization, subsidized by American taxpayers.

And, by the way, as I've noted, Chahine's imam, Elahi, openly meets in Lebanon with Fadlallah all the time. Al Mabarat Charitable Organization's Dearborn officers--Fouad T. Beydoun, Ahmad J. Bazzi, and Nazem Baydoun--are from families that all come from Bint Jbeil, the Hezbollah stronghold in the South of Lebanon. Al Mabarat Charitable Organization's taxes show annual outlays of close to $1 million, but improperly fail to provide a separate schedule listing where the money went. Where is the money going?

Al Mabarrat's Website Features Hezbollah Spiritual Leader Fadlallah (Screenshots thanks to David Lunde) Talal Chahine with Hezbollah Spiritual Leader Fadlallah (from court records) Hezbollah's Mohammed Fadlallah & Chahine Imam Mohammed Ali Elahi

It it interesting to note that the so-called "terrorism expert" who only just discovered these groups is praising FBI Assistant Special Agent in Charge William Kowalski. As we've written, the calorically-gifted Kowalski is doing nothing (unless you count PR, which the "terrorism expert" apparently did) on the Hezbollah front. In fact, he's running--paunch and all-to console Hezbollah money-launderers and defrauders and Hezbollah Mosques and pandering all around. Meanwhile, he's sending his counter-terrorism agents to monitor League of Women's Voters meetings. No joke. He actually did that.

Posted by Debbie on July 24, 2006 08:12 AM to Debbie Schlussel