Sana’a: A Yemeni cleric, who was accused by the US of funding a terrorist organisation, denied any ties with Al Qaida in Yemen, challenging the US bring evidence to his involvement.
Abdul Wahab Mohammad Al Humaiqani, the secretary general of the Yemeni Al Rashad Union, told Gulf News that the US charges are “baseless and unjust”
“The US has two choices, either to drop accusations or bring evidence to substantiate allegations and I am ready to stand before a Yemeni court to defend myself,”
The US Treasury Department recently put Al Humaiqani and the Qatari head of a Geneva-based human rights organisation, Abdul Rahman Bin Umair Al Nuaimi, on a list of global terrorists having ties to Al Qaida.
“These accusations come in the context of political conspiracies in Yemen. Some people fed the Americans with false information about me to curb my activities,”
He said the US might want to punish him to his active role with Al Karama Foundation that campaigns against US drone strikes that have killed many civilians in Yemen.
“I used to be in charge of the foundation’s branch in Yemen. I was also running a charity called Al Rashad which offers help to widows and orphans. The sanction will have an impact on my activities. I will not be able to send or receive funds,” he added.
Al Humaiqani said he knew Al Nuaimi when he was working as a mufti at Qatar’s Ministry of Endowments and Islamic Affairs.
At the same time, Yemen Clerics Commission denounced the US charges and urged Yemen and Qatar governments to stand by their citizens.
Headed by Abdul Majid Al Zindani, a Yemeni Islamic scholar who has also been on the same list of global terrorists since 2004, the commission issued a strongly–worded statement saying that the US accusations are “false” and “represent a blatant attack on the two citizens and the sovereignty of the two countries”.
Al Humaiqani hails from the southern province of Al Baydha, where local people recently arranged a protest to show their support with the cleric.
The US Treasury said that the Yemeni cleric exploited the unrest in Yemen in 2011 to pave the way for Al Qaida’s affiliates to “gaining a foothold and safe haven in Al Baydha Governorate”.
