WASHINGTON — The Obama administration imposed financial sanctions Monday on an alleged terror leader accused of trying to carry out attacks at last year’s Olympic Games in China.
WASHINGTON — The Obama administration imposed financial sanctions Monday on an alleged terror leader accused of trying to carry out attacks at last year’s Olympic Games in China. The Treasury Department’s target was Abdul Haq, head of the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Party. The action means that any bank accounts or other financial assets found in the United States belonging to him must be frozen. Americans also are barred from doing business with Haq, who is Chinese. "Abdul Haq commands a terror group that sought to sow violence and fracture international unity at the 2008 Olympic Games in China," said Stuart Levey, the Treasury Department’s undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence. The United States already has branded the Eastern Turkistan Islamic Party, or ETIP, a terrorist group and said it has helped to support al-Qaida, another terror organization. Treasury alleged that in early 2008, Haq had directed ETIP’s military commander to attack various Chinese cities, focusing on those scheduled to hold Olympic events. "Under Haq, trained terrorists planned to sabotage the Olympic Games by conducting terrorist attacks within China before the Olympics began," the department alleged. The department also alleged that Haq "raised funds, recruited new members and further developed the terrorist organization." ______ In photo: President Barack Obama points to a familiar face in the crowd as he walks across the South Lawn of the White House after returning to the United States Sunday, April 19, 2009 in Washington.
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