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US Treasury targets leader of group tied to al-Qaeda

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2009-04-21 11:27

WASHINGTON -- The US Department of the Treasury said on Monday that it has designated Abdul Haq, the overall leader and commander of the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Party (ETIP), as a terrorist who supports al-Qaeda and will freeze his assets and prohibit transactions with him.

"Abdul Haq commands a terror group that sought to sow violence and fracture international unity at the 2008 Olympic Games in China," said Stuart Levey, under secretary of treasury for terrorism and financial intelligence, in a statement published on the official website of the department.

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"Today, we stand together with the world in condemning this brutal terrorist and isolating him from the international financial system," the statement quoted Levey as saying.

The statement said the action of US Treasury follows a decision by the United Nations Security Council's 1267 Committee to place Haq on its list of persons associated with Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda, or the Taliban and subject to sanctions by UN member states.

According to the statement, as ETIP overall leader, Abdul Haq raised funds, recruited new members and further developed the terrorist organization.

In early January 2008, Haq directed ETIP's military commander to attack various Chinese cities, particularly focusing on the cities holding the Olympic Games. Under Haq, trained terrorists planned to sabotage the Olympic Games by conducting terrorist attacks within China before the Olympics began.

Since late 2007, the statement said, Haq sent terrorists to the Middle East to raise funds and buy explosive materials for terrorist attacks against Chinese targets outside China.

Abdul Haq became the leader of ETIP following the death of the previous ETIP leader in October 2003. As of 2005, Haq was also a member of al-Qaeda's Shura Council.