NEWS
5A
THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 25. 2008
NATIONAL
for our
15
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Supporters of the Holy Land Foundation rush into the Earle Cabell Federal Building upon hearing that the jury had returned a verdict in the Holy Land Foundation trial on Monday in Dallas. The jury determined that the Holy Land Foundation and five men who worked with the Muslim charity were guilty of three dozen counts related to the illegal funneling of money to the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.
Dallas-based Muslim charity convicted of aiding Hamas
BY PAUL J. WEBER ASSOCIATED PRESS
DALLAS — A Muslim charity and five of its former leaders were convicted Monday of funneling millions of dollars to the Palestinian militant group Hamas, finally handing the government a signature victory in its fight against terrorism funding.
U. S. District Judge Jorge A. Solis announced the guilty verdicts on all 108 counts on the eighth day of deliberations in the retrial of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, once the nation's largest Muslim charity.
It was the biggest terrorism financing case since the attacks of Sept. 11.
The convictions follow the collapse of Holy Land's first trial last year and defeats in other cases the government tried to build. President George W. Bush had personally announced the freezing of Holy Land's assets in 2001, calling the action "another step in the war on terrorism."
"My dad's not a criminal!" one nearly inconsolable woman said loudly. Court personnel told the family to calm her down, and as family members rushed her out of the courtroom, she said, "They treated him like an animal."
After Monday's verdict, family members showed little visible reaction until the jury left. Several women sobbed loudly.
Mufid Abdulqader and Abdulrahman Odeh were convicted
Ghassan Elashi, Holy Land's former chairman, and Shukri AbuBaker, the chief executive, were convicted of a combined 69 counts, including supporting a specially designated terrorist, money laundering and tax fraud.
of three counts of conspiracy, and Mohammed El-Mezain was convicted of one count of conspiracy to support a terrorist organization. Holy Land itself was convicted of all 32 counts.
A sentencing date hasn't been scheduled, but the punishments could be steep. Supporting a terrorist organization carries a maximum 15-year sentence on each count; money laundering carries a maximum 20 years on each conviction.
Solis ordered the Holy Land
Solis ordere leader s detained, citing the long prison terms they may face and their ties to the Middle East.
Holy Land was accused of giving more than $12 million to support Hamas. The
Holy Land wasn't accused of violence. Rather, the government said the Richardson, Texas-based charity financed schools, hospitals and social welfare programs controlled by Hamas in areas ravaged by the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
The U.S. designated Hamas a terrorist organization in 1995 and again in 1997, making contributions to the group illegal. Government officials raided Holy Land's headquarters in December 2001 and shut it down.
mittees — as terrorist recruiting pools. The charities, the government argued, spread Hamas' violent ideology and generated loyalty and support among Palestinians.
It was a "womb to the tomb" cycle, prosecutor Barry Jonas told jurors during closing arguments last week.
seven-week retrial ran about as long as the original, which ended in October 2007 when a judge declared a mistrial on most charges.
Holy Land supporters told a different story. They accused the government of politicizing the case as part of its war on terrorism, while attorneys for the foundation said Holly Land's mission was
U. S. District Judge Jorge A. Solis announced guilty verdicts on 108 counts in the retrial of the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, once the nation's largest Muslim charity.
Prosecutors labeled Holy Lands benefactors — called zakat com-
philanthropy and providing much-needed aid to the Middle East.
The y rem in d eed jurors that none of the zakat committees are designated by the U.S. as terrorist fronts, and that
"No one here is engaging in acts of terrorism," Theresa Duncan, attorney for Baker, said during closing arguments.
Holy Land also donated to causes elsewhere, including helping victims of the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995.
A chaotic courtroom scene ended last year's original trial, which lasted nearly two months and kept jurors deliberating for 19 days. But they deadlocked on many counts, and when a judge polled the panel about other verdicts, some disavowed their vote.
The confusing finished led U.S. District Judge A. Joe Fish to declare a mistrial, and leaders of the defunct charity rushed outside to celebrate.
NEW YORK — The government's latest bailout of a big financial company — this time, Citigroup Inc. — sent Wall Street soaring Monday for the second straight session as investors bet that the worst of the financial industry's problems might finally be over. The Dow Jones industrials soared nearly 400 points, while all the major indexes jumped more than 4.5 percent.
BY TIM PARADIS
ASSOCIATED PRESS
The surge gave the market its first two-day advance since the end of October and the Dow its biggest two-day percentage gain since October 1987, the
Stocks rally after announcement of $20B bailout for Citigroup Inc.
month of the Black Monday crash. The Dow's 891-point rise over the two sessions also wiped out the 872-point plunge it suffered over the course of Wednesday and Thursday, when investors were anguishing over the fate of Citigroup and financial companies in general, and over the future of the nation's automakers.
ANTHONY CONROY Director for ConvergEx Group
"I think the Fed is poised to do whatever they possibly can to help the financials get through the current turmoil."
"The government has taken a new quill out, they've gone to where they didn't go before in terms of trying to secure the system." Bleier said. "Some of that vulnerability seems to be gone now"
ECONOMY
"This could be the template for saving the banks," said Scott Bleier, founder of market advisory service CreateCapital.com.
Still, the market remains wary, especially with the economy in a serious downturn. The Dow was up more than 500 points in the last hour before giving up some
Although investors sensed late last week that a rescue of Citigroup was forthcoming, investors nonetheless were heartened, even emboldened, by the U.S. government's decision late Sunday to invest $20 billion in Citigroup and guarantee $306 billion in risky assets.
Wall Street's enthusiasm grew not only because the bailout answered questions about Citigroup but also because many observers saw the move as offering as a model for how the government might carry out other bank stabilizations.
of its gains many investors wanted to take some money off the table before the next bit of bad news arrives. And the market has frequently done sharp reversals since the start of the
The efforts from the Treasury Department, the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to help stabilize Citigroup are only the latest this year to support a banking system troubled by bad debt and flagging confidence. Besides implementing its $700 billion bailout plan for the overall financial industry, the government has bailed out insurance giant American International Group Inc. and taken over lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
Broader stock indicators also jumped. The Standard & Poor's 500 index advanced 51.78, or 6.47 percent, to 851.81, and the Nasdaq composite index rose 87.67, or 6.33 percent, to 1,472.02.
credit crisis 15 months ago; its moves over the past four sessions are proof of how fractious trading has become.
The Dow rose 396.97, or 4.93 percent, to 8.443.39. It last put together a two-day advance on Oct. 30-31, along with the rest of the market.
"Not all banks are unhealthy, so knowing that the Fed is there is enough," Conroy said.
"You're definitely seeing relief," said Anthony Conroy, managing director and head trader for BNY ConvergEx Group. "More than anything, the Fed repaired some of the psychological damage that was being done to the sector. I think the Fed is poised to do whatever they possibly can to help
The Russell 2000 index of smaller companies rose 30.25, or 7.44 percent, to 436.79.
the financials get through the current turmoil.
Over the course of Friday and Monday, the Dow rose 1.8 percent, while the broader S&P 500 index jumped 13.2 percent. The Nasdaq rose 11.9 percent. Paper gains in U.S. stocks over the two sessions came to $1.2 trillion, according to the Dow Jones Wilshire 5000 Composite Index, which reflects nearly all stocks traded in America.
"I think it's a little bit of confidence coming back into the system right now," said Harry Clark, chief executive of Clark Capital Management. He contends the market began to form a bottom after an eight-day selloff that ended Oct. 10, and on Thursday made further headway toward setting a low that could give way to a rally.
Bond prices were mixed Monday as investors examined the government's bailout plan for Citigroup. The yield on the benchmark 10-year Treasury note, which moves opposite its price, rose to 3.33 percent from 3.20 percent late Friday.
The Treasury bill market showed continuing high demand, a sign of investors' caution. The yield on the three-month T-bill, considered one of the safest investments, fell to 0.01 percent from 0.04 percent late Friday.
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