US freezes Islamic hardliners’ cash
A Philippine Marine Corps commandant points to photos of Abu Sayyaf Muslim extremists, who were believed to be sheltering Umar Patek, allgedly involved in the 2002 Bali bombings that killed over 200 people.
Cut a check to these accused terrorists at your own peril.
The U.S. Treasury has forbidden any American to hand over money to three Indonesians linked to car bombings, assassinations and the 2002 nightclub bombing in touristed Bali, according to Reuters.
Along with these sanctions, the U.S. is also freezing any cash the men may have in American bank accounts. All three are linked to Southeast Asian al-Qaeda ally Jemaah Islamiyah.
Who are these guys?
In short, they are the accused financial links tying together Southeast Asia's best-known terror network to groups such as al-Qaeda.
The most infamous is Umar Patek, recently extradited to Indonesia to stand trial for allegedly masterminding one of the terror network's bloodiest feats: a nightclub bombing in Bali that killed 220 people.
The two others are Abdul Rahim Ba'aysir and Muhammad Jibril Abdul Rahman, a "conduit of money" from groups such as al-Qaeda who helped fund terror strikes in Indonesia and the Philippines, according to AFP.
The sanctions are "designed to cut off the suspects' ability to access the international finance system," Reuters reported.
What we don't know is how much frozen cash, if any, the men are holding in U.S.-linked banks.
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