There has been a dramatic proliferation of Islamic charities recently. While most are legitimate, considerable evidence reveals that others have more questionable intentions, and that funds have been diverted to support terrorist groups, such as al-Qaeda. The authors examine the contention through a detailed investigation of the charities involved, their financial intermediaries, and the terrorist organizations themselves. What they discover is that money from these charities has funded conflicts across the world, from the early days in Afghanistan, to subsequent terrorist activities in Asia, Africa, Palestine and, most recently, Europe and the United States.

Contents:

1. The third pillar of Islam: zakat;

2. Saudi Arabia and its Islamic charities;

3. The banks;

4. Afghanistan beginnings;

5. Islamic charities and the revolutionary Sudan;

6. Islam at war in the Balkans;

7. The Central Asian crescent and Russia;

8. From Afghanistan to Southeast Asia;

9. The Holy Land;

10. The Islamisation of Europe;

11. Islamic charities in North America.

J. Millard Burr is a former relief coordinator for Operation Lifeline Sudan, U.S. Agency for International Development.

Robert O. Collins is professor of history at the University of California at Santa Barbara.