Under the watch of Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN), Minnesota gave more than $2 million to an Islamic organization that raised funds for a charity connected to an al Qaeda-affiliated group, according to records reviewed by the Washington Examiner.
The Islamic Association of North America (IANA), which has received state grants from 2019 to 2024, is currently fundraising for Rahma Worldwide, a Michigan-based charity that would have sent “humanitarian aid” to Gaza following the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7. last year A deleted Facebook post from October 2023 by Rahma Worldwide president Shadi Zaza confirmed that the charity was collaborating in a relief effort with the Islamic Heritage Revival Society of Kuwait, a terrorist group sanctioned by the United States for its support of Al Qaeda.
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This revelation comes as Governor Walz faces mounting criticism Washington Examiner reports exposing his links to controversial Muslim cleric Asad Zaman. Walz has consistently welcomed Zaman, who has shown open support for neo-Nazis and defended the October 7 attacks on Israel. At a 2018 event hosted by the American Muslim Society of Minnesota run by Zaman, Walz even referred to Zaman as a “master teacher.”
Despite the clear connections, Vice President Kamala Harris' campaign insists Walz has no personal relationship with Zaman. However, Harris and Walz officials have dodged requests for comment on the matter.
Terrorism analyst Sam Westrop of the Middle East Forum criticized the administration's actions, stating, “Apparently embracing and funding an imam who sympathizes with neo-Nazis was just the beginning.”
Created in 2001, the same year the Texas-based Holy Land Foundation was designated a terrorist organization by the U.S. Treasury Department, IANA describes itself as a “national umbrella organization with more than 35 centers,” including more than a dozen in Minnesota. IANA claims to represent Muslim communities nationally and to speak on behalf of its member organizations, including mosques that pay membership fees.
The Minnesota Department of Health awarded more than $238,600 to IANA in 2024 alone. In 2023, the agency awarded them $191,900, following a $1 million award in 2022 and more than $612,200 from 2019 to 2021. These funds were allegedly earmarked for public health initiatives, including community vaccinations and outreach to the Somali community.
Yusuf Abdi Abdulle, director of the IANA, publicly stated on October 7 that “Palestine has the right to defend itself,” prompting Zaman to respond with an image of a Palestinian flag. On the same day, IANA, backed by Walz, echoed a statement by its partner group accusing Israel of “unprovoked” attacks in Gaza, despite the brutal slaughter of 1,200 Israelis by Hamas.
IANA is also part of a coalition supporting convicted murderer Imam Jamil al Amin, according to a letter. The organization shares offices in Minneapolis with the Humanitarian Aid Organization for Africa (HARO), formerly led by Abdulle. In 2012, a HARO volunteer was sentenced to eight years in prison for aiding al-Shabaab, an al-Qaeda affiliate.
Rahma Worldwide, which benefits from IANA fundraising, has boasted of its involvement in a pro-Palestinian aid campaign alongside the Islamic Heritage Revival Society of Kuwait, a Treasury-sanctioned group of the US in 2008 to support Al Qaeda. According to Washington Post report, this group is also involved in Hamas' fundraising operations.
Last year, Rahma Worldwide organized an event with Syrian cleric Mohamad Rateb al Nabulsi, who is known for his extremist views, including advocating the killing of gay people on Hamas' official channel, Al Aqsa TV. In 2021, Rahma Worldwide shared a Facebook post showing Zaza signing an agreement with officials from the Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza.
Abdulle and Zaza appeared together as speakers at a December fundraiser to benefit Rahma Worldwide, and Abdulle later promoted another Gaza fundraiser in Minneapolis with Zaza on January 1.
Meanwhile, former IANA director Sheikh Hassan Dhooye congratulated Walz in an X post on Aug. 6, which included a photo of them together. Dhooye also congratulated Hamas ally Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on his re-election. Dhooye was part of a delegation that met Erdogan in 2020 and has been linked to terrorist financing and recruitment activities in the Somali community.
Congratulations to Tim Walz on becoming Vice President, looking forward to seeing the great impact you will have in this role! pic.twitter.com/iIUTMnkQsa
— Sheikh Hassan Dhooye (@dhooye) August 6, 2024
Dhooye, who goes by Hassan Mohamed Jama, remains active within the group backed by the Walz administration. He attended a meeting with Abdulle and other Somali leaders in April and spoke at the annual IANA convention last September. In May, he even led a prayer on behalf of the IANA before the Minnesota legislature.
Terrorism analyst Westrop noted that the Walz administration “seems bent on picking the worst possible partners at every turn,” noting the $2.1 million in grants awarded to IANA. He called it a “reprehensible use of Minnesota taxpayer dollars” and a “complete betrayal” of moderate Muslim and Somali activists fighting extremism in their communities.
The Minnesota Department of Health and IANA did not respond to requests for comment.
This piece was written by the LifeZette News Staff on August 16, 2024. It originally appeared on LifeZette and used with permission.
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