US embassy cable - 05ISLAMABAD15769

S E C R E T SECTION 01 OF 02 ISLAMABAD 015769 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT - PLEASE PASS TO USAID 
KABUL- PLEASE PASS TO CFC-A 
 
E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/20/2015 
TAGS: AEMR, ASEC, EAID, MASS, PGOV, PREL, PTER, PK, Earthquake 
SUBJECT: PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE:  ISLAMIST AND EXTREMIST 
GROUPS ENGAGE IN RELIEF EFFORT 
 
REF: A. (A) ISLAMABAD 15736 
     B. (B) ISLAMABAD 15463 
 
Classified By: Derived from DSCG 05-01, d 
 
1. (S) Summary: Islamist parties, clergy, and 
militant/extremist groups are using the Kashmir earthquake to 
strengthen their public image in affected areas...and to 
raise money.  Member parties of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal 
(MMA) are engaged in independent relief efforts through their 
charitable foundations.  Jamaat-ud-Dawa (JUD), the parent 
organization of designated FTO Lashkar-e-Tayyaba (LT) and 
most visible extremist group currently involved in relief 
operations, has already received favorable media coverage. 
In keeping with its long-standing practice, JUD will likely 
funnel a portion of charitable contributions for earthquake 
relief to support militant operations.  A number of Muslim 
charities are also engaged in relief efforts, most 
prominently Islamic Relief, which while not yet designated as 
a specially designated national and blocked person has been 
monitored by the USG for some time.  End Summary. 
 
2. (S) The Islamist parties comprising the MMA are engaged in 
fundraising for earthquake relief through their charitable 
foundations.  Most prominent MMA leaders have already 
traveled to the earthquake zone for well-publicized tours. 
Al-Khidmat, the Jamaat-e-Islami's (JI) charitable arm, is 
most prominent in Azad Jammu Kashmir (AJK), while it shares 
the stage in North West Frontier Province (NWFP) with 
Al-Khair, Jamiate Ulema-e-Islam Fazlur Rehman's (JUI-F) 
charitable wing.  JI officials privately claimed to have 
raised nearly $5 million for relief.  (Note:  Post believes 
this figure is exaggerated.)  Both have established clinics 
and distribution points for blankets, food, water, and 
over-the-counter medicine.  JI and JUI-F have used their 
charitable arms to raise funds for terrorist/militant 
organizations in the past.  JUI-F seems to have severed its 
financial relations with such organizations, although the JI 
link with the FTO Hizbul Mujahideen may still exist and a 
portion of funds may be diverted there.  Officials from 
Jamiat Ulema Pakistan (JUP) and Tehrike Islami Pakistan (TIP) 
admitted that their parties' relief efforts have been 
miniscule, but claimed that they were a necessary and 
effective public relations tool. 
 
3. (S) JUD is the most visible militant group engaged in 
relief operations, although we understand that 
Jaish-i-Muhammad, Harakat-ul-Mujahadeen, 
Harakat-ul-Jihad-i-Islam, and Hizbul Mujahideen have all 
launched smaller efforts.  Sectarian extremist groups 
Sipah-i-Mohammad, Sipah-i-Sahaba, and Sunni Tehrike are also 
carrying out relief work.  Only JUD and Sunni Tehrike are 
overtly fundraising, as others are officially "banned" 
organizations.  Regardless of their "banned" status, post 
suspected that these groups still raise funds through 
affiliated and sympathetic mosques, madrassas, and clergy, 
who routinely collect "charitable" donations during this 
Ramadan season.  JUD, like most Pakistani militant and 
sectarian organizations, has a long history of channeling a 
portion of all donations to their militant arms; post 
believes it will continue to do so. 
 
4. (S)  JUD relief efforts have been prominently and 
positively highlighted in the local media.  Articles have 
praised JUD's working alongside the USG in distributing 
assistance, despite the USG's desire to have JUD declared a 
terrorist organization.  While the GOP has professed a desire 
to close JUD relief operations, no action has yet been taken. 
 
5. (S) Several Kashmiri militant/terrorist and sectarian 
extremist organizations are raising funds overseas, either 
directly or through supportive clerics, particularly in the 
Persian Gulf, Malaysia, Indonesia, Egypt and Singapore. 
This revenue flow increases during Ramadan, as clergy seek 
zakat to support "charitable" efforts in Pakistan.  Pakistani 
clergy fundraise among Islamic communities in Europe and the 
United States; however, increasingly stringent visa 
requirements have limited the ability of supporters of 
extremist/militant/terrorist organizations to travel to these 
countries.  International Islamic charities are, of course, 
raising funds for the victims of the earthquake disaster 
worldwide.  Islamic Relief, in particular, has gained post's 
attention for its relatively aggressive posturing, including 
having its website listed on CNN and BBC as a possible 
contact for charitable donations.  (Note:  As Washington is 
aware, although Islamic Relief is not on Treasury's sanction 
list, it has been investigated and monitored by various USG 
agencies for some time. End note.) 
 
6. (S) Comment:  The GOP faces a serious dilemma dealing with 
the proliferation of fundraising and relief efforts by 
militant/terrorist/extremist organizations, which President 
Musharraf has publicly promised to close as part of his 
crackdown on extremism.  While the fact that a portion of the 
money raised may be diverted to militant activity is 
disturbing, post is also concerned that volunteers from 
extremist parties have become the face of relief operations 
in some difficult-to-access parts of AJK.  With organized 
relief efforts reaching into remote areas of the disaster 
zone, post believes that GOP and international actors will 
supplant militant organizations as the primary source of 
assistance, leading to quiet closure of militant relief 
operations with little negative public reactions. 
CROCKER