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Moneyed African Insurgents Likely Using Banks to Launder Funds, Say Former Officials

By Colby Adams

Ransom payments and other money raised by blacklisted Malian insurgents are likely entering the formal financial system despite international sanctions, say former governmental investigators. Kidnappers tied to al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM), the Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa (MUJWA), Ansar al Deen and others have raised $65 million since 2005, according to a July 2011 estimate by the Paris-based Financial Action Task Force. The Islamist groups have led the insurgency against Mali's government after pushing aside ethnic Tuaregs. While the ransoms tend to be paid in cash, the magnitude of funds makes it highly likely that...

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