Countering Terrorist Financing: We Need a Long-Term Prioritizing Strategy
Hawalas,2 charities, commodities—each of these has one aspect in common: They are methods by which terrorists launder and remit their money. In the wake of 11 September, much has been discovered about the financial support structure of the terrorist cells that perpetrated the attacks on the United States. Investigation of these cells and others has revealed a wide array of methods used by international terrorists to fund their deadly activities. Among these methods are conventional money laundering, acquisition of illegal funds through drug trafficking, smuggling of bulk cash, trade-based money laundering, use of charities for fundraising, and informal money remittance systems such as hawala. With this smorgasbord of financial means from which to choose, international terrorists have been forcing law enforcement to use a shotgun approach in hopes of successfully hitting a terrorist financial target. Though the shotgun approach was effective in the immediate aftermath of 11 September—en...