Bush Takes Aim at Terrorists' Money

Sept. 24, 2001 -- The U.S. fight against terrorism moved ahead on several fronts today, the most significant in the form of an executive order that froze the assets of 27 people and organizations suspected of financing terrorism.

The order also threatened to freeze the U.S. assets of any government that does not cooperate in the cause to lock up all assets linked to terrorists.

In addition, Attorney General John Ashcroft lobbied for more measures to fight terrorism, and the Air Line Pilots Association urged Congress to pass legislation allowing pilots to carry firearms incockpits.

Ashcroft asked for wiretap and surveillance capabilities and expanded powers to detain suspected terrorists. He said 352 people have now been arrested or detained, and another 392 people are being sought for questioning.

Meanwhile, Osama bin Laden — the main target of the financial order — reportedly released his own call to action, calling on Muslims to join a holy war against "the American crusade," and his hosts mobilized their forces and shut down virtually all humanitarian actions in their war-ravaged Afghanistan.

Financial Front Broadened

In a ceremony at the White House Rose Garden today, President Bush said he had launched a "strike on the financial foundation" of terrorists.

Previously, only direct assets of alleged terrorists have been frozen. Under the new order, assets of supporters of terrorists may also be frozen. The United States will also freeze the assets of charities that are believed to have ties to terrorists. So far three such charities have been specified by the order but Bush said more will be named and added to the list soon.

In addition, the United States will have the authority to freeze any assets of a U.S. bank or any government that refuses to cooperate. Bush admitted most terrorists' assets exist outside the United States. In order to investigate possible terrorist funding in other nations, Bush said his administration will work with the United Nations and with leaders from the European Union and G-7/G-8 group of nations to develop ways of tracking funding beyond U.S. borders. Some of those efforts may involve changing some banking laws in Europe, Bush said.

All U.S. efforts targeting terrorists' financial assets will be coordinated by a Foreign Terrorist Asset Tracking Center within the U.S. Treasury Department. The center, the president said, will investigate the financial structure of terrorist networks, follow their money trail and "freeze the money to disrupt their actions."

As officials pursued terrorist financing, legitimate trading on Wall Street took a promising turn. The Dow Jones industrials finished up nearly 370 points today, following one of the worst weeks of trading since the Great Depression.

Report: Bin Laden Calls for Action

On the other side of the world, action and rhetoric also heated up.

Mullah Mohammed Omar, the leader of Afghanistan's ruling Taliban, made his own demands on the United States, calling for the withdrawal of U.S. troops from the Persian Gulf, and asking the United States to end involvement in the "Palestinian crisis" and leave Islam "alone."

Since 1996, the Taliban has hosted bin Laden, the prime suspect in the Sept. 11 attacks on the Pentagon and the World Trade Center, estimated to have left some 7,000 people missing or dead.

Last week, Afghan clerics recommended bin Laden leave "whenever possible," but the Taliban says it has been unable to find the Saudi-born fugitive to tell him to go.

The Taliban said today it was also dispatching 300,000 fighters to defend Afghanistan's borders. The United Nations says the Taliban has threatened to kill U.N. relief workers in Afghanistan.

It said the Taliban had also seized some 1,400 tons of food from the World Food Program today and shut down the agency's offices in Kandahar and Kabul.

Bin Laden reportedly issued his own statement today, received by fax at Qatar's Al-Jazeera satellite television network.

"I announce to you, our beloved brothers, that we are steadfast on the path of jihad [holy war] with the heroic, faithful Afghan people, under the leadership of Mullah Mohammed Omar," announcers read from the fax.

And in Cairo, Sheik Ali Tantawi, of Al Az'har Mosque — an influential religious authority in the Arab world — reportedly issued a fatwa, or religious ruling, against joining a U.S. coalition and attacking Afghanistan or any other country without material evidence of bin Laden's involvement in the attacks.

Bush and Secretary of State Colin Powell confirmed today the government is preparing a report detailing evidence that will prove bin Laden was behind the attacks, but much of that report may remain secret.

"As we are able to provide information that isn't sensitive and isn't classified, we will do that," Powell told reporters from the Rose Garden.

Forces Moving In

On the ground, in the air or on the way, U.S. forces are moving into position near Afghanistan.

Sources tell ABCNEWS that the special American ground troops will likely try to slip into the country and hunt for bin Laden. Small teams of specially trained U.S. ground troops are reportedly in Tajikistan, a northern neighbor of Afghanistan.

Washington may also have solidified a key regional ally in the war on terror. Kazakhstan President Nursultan Nazarbayev said today his nation would assist with "all the means it has at its disposal," according to Reuters.

Washington will also try to enlist the help of Afghan guerrilla fighters who have been waging their own longtime war with the Taliban. Today, Russian President Vladimir Putin said his nation would intensify its support of these forces and provide them with weapons and military equipment.

Though airstrikes are also anticipated, U.S. officials believe a ground operation, however limited, will be vital in the assault on terrorists.

"Is it likely that an aircraft carrier or a cruise missile is going to find a person?" Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld asked reporters. "No, it's not likely. That isn't how this is going to happen."

Government sources told ABCNEWS the CIA is establishing contacts and gathering intelligence in Afghanistan, and flying small unmanned spy planes over the region.

Rumsfeld confirmed the United States had lost contact with an unmanned reconnaissance plane over Afghanistan, but said that did not mean that it had been shot down. The Taliban claimed Friday they had shot down an unmanned plane. Rumsfeld did not say whether the plane was in Taliban hands.

Other U.S. forces were in the region, though officials would not say where. B-52 and B-1 bombers and additional forces and equipment were journeying to the region. Meanwhile, armed forces are on alert nationwide, with more armed reserves expected to be called in Nebraska, Wyoming and Colorado this week.

In other developments:

Bush and Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien met today and pledged their cooperation in the fight against terrorism. Responding to criticism that he failed to mention Canada during his address to Congress last Thursday, Bush said, "I didn't think it was necessary to praise a brother, after all we're talking about Canada."

The Bush administration is taking measures to ensure that members of the reserves who have been called to action are not penalized for missing time at school or work. Secretary of Education Rod Paige today directed lenders in colleges and universities to provide members of the National Guard relief from their student loan obligations. And Labor Secretary Elaine Chao announced her department was launching an education campaign for employers to ensure that reserve members are re-employed in their previous jobs after completing service.

The Vatican said today it would understand if the United States had to resort to force to protect its citizens, but it favors a nonviolent solution and wants any action to be a response that targets terrorism, not Islam, according to Reuters.