Since the September 11 attacks,roughly $121 million in terrorist assets has been frozen worldwide, but less than 20 percent of thistotal has been blocked in the past 11 months. How efforts to "follow the money" should be prioritized in and integrated witha comprehensive global struggle against terrorism thus becomes an issue of considerable significancefor U.S. policymakers and for Congress. They claim thatasset seizures to date have constricted the funds of al Qaeda and other terrorist groups. Both have employed a range of bank and non-bank transactions to store and transfer funds. (47)
Moving and Storing Value. The U.S.-led effort to sever terrorism's financial lifelines has received mixed reviews to date. Furthermore, the campaign against terrorist finance has provoked controversy on various religious, public policy, and humanitarian grounds.
The U.S.-led international campaign to deprive terrorists of funding has so far produced mixed results. Though more than $120 million in terrorists' accounts reportedly has been blocked sinceSeptember 11, 2001, less than 20 percent of this total has been frozen in the past 11 months. Theal Qaeda network increasingly is shifting to non-bank methods of moving and storing value and isrelying on a decentralized structure of largely self-financing cells; moreover, Middle Eastern donorsapparently continue to provide funds to al Qaeda and other terrorist groups. In addition, thecampaign has aroused controversy on various political, religious and humanitarian grounds and isviewed in some quarters as broadly anti-Islamic. How the crackdown on terror finance should beprioritized and integrated with a comprehensive global struggle against terrorism thus becomes anissue of considerable significance for U.S. policymakers and for Congress.