[Public Papers of the Presidents of the United States: George W. Bush (2001, Book II)]
[December 4, 2001]
[Page 1469]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office www.gpo.gov]



[[Page 1469]]


Remarks on the Financial Fight Against Terror
December 4, 2001

    The President. Good morning. Today we take another important step in 
the financial fight against terror. From the beginning of this fight I 
have said our enemies are terrorist networks of global reach, and all 
who harbor them and support them are our enemies, as well. We began with 
Al Qaida and the Taliban. We identified some of Al Qaida's financial 
backers, and we moved against their accounts.
    In November we advanced further and identified 22 more global 
terrorist organizations. And now we are moving against their financing, 
as well. At midnight yesterday the Treasury Department froze the assets 
and accounts of the Holy Land Foundation in Richardson, Texas, whose 
money is used to support the Hamas terror organization. Earlier today 
Federal agents secured the offices and records of the Holy Land 
Foundation in Texas, California, New Jersey, and Illinois as a part of 
an ongoing investigation. At the same time, we have blocked the accounts 
of an Hamas-linked bank, an Hamas-linked holding company based in the 
West Bank.
    The message is this: Those who do business with terror will do no 
business with the United States or anywhere else the United States can 
reach.
    Hamas is an extremist group that calls for the total destruction of 
the state of Israel. It is one of the deadliest terrorist organizations 
in the world today.
    Hamas openly claimed responsibility for this past weekend's suicide 
attacks in Israel that killed 25 innocent people, many of them 
teenagers, and wounded almost 200 other people. Hamas is guilty of 
hundreds of other deaths over the years and just in the past 12 months 
have killed two Americans. And today we act.
    Hamas has obtained much of the money that it pays for murder abroad 
right here in the United States, money originally raised by the Holy 
Land Foundation. The Holy Land Foundation is registered with the IRS as 
a tax-exempt charity based in Richardson. It raised $13 million from 
people in America last year. The Holy Land Foundation claims that the 
money it solicits goes to care for needy Palestinians in the West Bank 
and Gaza. Money raised by the Holy Land Foundation is used by Hamas to 
support schools and indoctrinate children to grow up into suicide 
bombers. Money raised by the Holy Land Foundation is also used by Hamas 
to recruit suicide bombers and to support their families.
    America has called on other nations to suppress the financing of 
terror. Today we take further steps to suppress it inside our borders. I 
am confident that most of the donors to the Holy Land Foundation, and 
perhaps even some of the individuals who are associated with the 
Foundation, had no idea how its money was being used. They wanted to 
relieve suffering in the region of the world that has suffered too much. 
But the facts are clear: The terrorists benefit from the Holy Land 
Foundation. And we're not going to allow it. Our action today is another 
step in the war on terrorism. It's not the final step. There are more 
terrorist networks of global reach and more front groups who use deceit 
to support them. The net is closing. Today it just got tighter. And now 
it's my honor to welcome to the podium the Secretary of the Treasury, 
Paul O'Neill.

Note: The President spoke at 10:58 a.m. in the Rose Garden at the White 
House, prior to his departure for Orlando, FL.