Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network has continued to spread, with Iraq becoming a fertile ground for al-Qaeda supporters while anti-terror responses have been weak, a group charged with monitoring the implementation of UN sanctions against terrorist organizations said Monday.
While the group cited some progress in freezing assets of and banning travel by members of al-Qaeda and the former militants in Afghanistan, the Taliban, it said governments failed to cooperate in providing information regarding those members.
"Without a tougher and more comprehensive resolution -- a resolution which obligates states to take mandated measures -- the role played by the United Nations in this important battle risks becoming marginalized," the group said in a report.
The group, known as the "Committee on Sanction on al-Qaeda, the Taliban and their associates," was created by the UN Security Council in the wake of the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks against the US.
The council ordered a freeze of assets and a travel ban on al-Qaeda and Taliban members. The monitoring group has listed 371 names and organizations belonging to al-Qaeda and the Taliban and has demanded governments provide information on 272 individuals for the purposes of asset freezing and travel ban. But it said governments have been reluctant to meet the request.
It said Iraq has become "readily accessible to followers of al-Qaeda."
"With such large numbers of foreign and non-Muslim troops involved [in Iraq], it is proving an ideal `battleground' for followers of Osama bin Laden's inspired `World Islamic Front for Jihad against the Jews and Crusaders,'" the report said, referring to the US-led coalition force in Iraq.
The monitoring group tried to visit several Middle Eastern countries in September to write the report. But Saudi Arabia denied entry to the group. In Kuwait, the group sought information about the al-Qaeda-related Wafa Humanitarian Organization, but was told that the organization did not exist.
Yemen failed to provide names of those detained in the attack against the USS Cole in 2000. In Egypt, the group was told that Cairo had not received a UN letter requesting information on individuals on the list of al-Qaeda suspects.
The report said it received little cooperation in Jordan, Syria and Morocco.
It said governments in some countries were not aware of UN resolutions demanding information and cooperation in fighting global terrorism.
Al-Qaeda was suspected of maintaining assets in 83 countries, but only 21 countries have reported freezing those assets. The total assets frozen amounted to US$75 million with the US accounting for US$70 million.
Governments have been asked to provide information on asset freezing, but the report said they have been vague on the mechanism and structures put in place to identify and investigate banking institutions that may harbor those assets.
The UN arms embargo on al-Qaeda and the Taliban has not been fully carried out, either. The report said, "States' description of the [embargo] measures ... are more telling from the information they do not provide than from what they do provide."
Taiwan is projected to lose a working-age population of about 6.67 million people in two waves of retirement in the coming years, as the nation confronts accelerating demographic decline and a shortage of younger workers to take their place, the Ministry of the Interior said. Taiwan experienced its largest baby boom between 1958 and 1966, when the population grew by 3.78 million, followed by a second surge of 2.89 million between 1976 and 1982, ministry data showed. In 2023, the first of those baby boom generations — those born in the late 1950s and early 1960s — began to enter retirement, triggering
ECONOMIC BOOST: Should the more than 23 million people eligible for the NT$10,000 handouts spend them the same way as in 2023, GDP could rise 0.5 percent, an official said Universal cash handouts of NT$10,000 (US$330) are to be disbursed late next month at the earliest — including to permanent residents and foreign residents married to Taiwanese — pending legislative approval, the Ministry of Finance said yesterday. The Executive Yuan yesterday approved the Special Act for Strengthening Economic, Social and National Security Resilience in Response to International Circumstances (因應國際情勢強化經濟社會及民生國安韌性特別條例). The NT$550 billion special budget includes NT$236 billion for the cash handouts, plus an additional NT$20 billion set aside as reserve funds, expected to be used to support industries. Handouts might begin one month after the bill is promulgated and would be completed within
NO CHANGE: The TRA makes clear that the US does not consider the status of Taiwan to have been determined by WWII-era documents, a former AIT deputy director said The American Institute in Taiwan’s (AIT) comments that World War-II era documents do not determine Taiwan’s political status accurately conveyed the US’ stance, the US Department of State said. An AIT spokesperson on Saturday said that a Chinese official mischaracterized World War II-era documents as stating that Taiwan was ceded to the China. The remarks from the US’ de facto embassy in Taiwan drew criticism from the Ma Ying-jeou Foundation, whose director said the comments put Taiwan in danger. The Chinese-language United Daily News yesterday reported that a US State Department spokesperson confirmed the AIT’s position. They added that the US would continue to
The National Development Council (NDC) yesterday unveiled details of new regulations that ease restrictions on foreigners working or living in Taiwan, as part of a bid to attract skilled workers from abroad. The regulations, which could go into effect in the first quarter of next year, stem from amendments to the Act for the Recruitment and Employment of Foreign Professionals (外國專業人才延攬及僱用法) passed by lawmakers on Aug. 29. Students categorized as “overseas compatriots” would be allowed to stay and work in Taiwan in the two years after their graduation without obtaining additional permits, doing away with the evaluation process that is currently required,
RSS