September 17, 2003

Bosnian Official Links With Terrorism, Including 9/11, Become Increasingly Apparent as Clinton, Clark Attempt to Justify Support of Bosnian Militants

Exclusive. Analysis. By Gregory R. Copley, Editor, GIS, with input from GIS stations in the Balkans. A series of documents, just acquired by GIS/Defense & Foreign Affairs Daily, highlight the links between radical Islamists in key positions in the Government of Bosnia-Herzegovina (B-H) and known and suspected Islamists with terrorist links. Significantly, one of the key Bosnian Islamist officials, Huso (he later called himself Hussein) Zivalj, was B-H Ambassador to the United Nations during the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks on New York. He arrived just before the attacks and left the post shortly thereafter.

It is now becoming increasingly clear that the movement of Zivalj to the New York post just before (and his departure just after) the September 11, 2001, attacks was not coincidental.

Significantly, the clarity of the links between the Bosnian Islamists and anti-US terrorism is now becoming apparent at a time when former US President William Clinton and his former military appointee and Supreme Allied Commander Europe (SACEUR), Gen. Wesley Clark (now a Democratic Party presidential aspirant for the US 2004 elections), have begun moves to justify their military support for Bosnian and Kosovo Islamists in moves which will almost certainly lead to a new wave of ethnic division in B-H and in neighboring Serbia. [See Defense & Foreign Affairs Daily, September 8, 2003: US Official Implicated With Bosnian High Representative Ashdown in Attempting to Force Fabricated Report on Srebrenica.]

Zivalj had earlier — between 1992 and 1995 — been B-H Ambassador to Vienna, Austria. At that time, he approved a significant number of visas and passports to radical Islamists of non-Bosnian origin. He then went on to be Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, the most senior Muslim position in the Ministry. He maintained a constant shuttle during his time as Deputy Minister from Sarajevo to Vienna, the United States and a number of Arab countries.

 He ensured that the Vienna Embassy became a key location for ongoing support of radical Islamists, and a wide range of visas and passports were granted to non-Bosnians in the time following his own term there as Ambassador. A list of visas approved for Muslims at the Embassy between 1997 and February 2001 appears below as Appendix (i).

Significantly, Zivalj, who is regarded as the most important radical Islamist in the B-H networks, working closely with al-Qaida and Iranian terrorist officials, has a US Green Card (permanent residency), and his family is believed to be living still in Florida. Zivalj now is believed to be a director of Islamic Bank, in B-H. He spent some time, during the communist era in the former Yugoslavia, in prison with Alija Izetbegovic, who later became the Islamist President of B-H. Significantly, Zivalj used his position in Vienna to issue, in 1995, a B-H passport to Safet Catovic [Passport No. BH-46600], and GIS/Defense & Foreign Affairs Daily has the documentation on this. Earlier, he had issued a B-H passport to Osama bin Laden, head of the al-Qaida networks.

Zivalj had been a Vice-President and member of the governing board of the Third World Relief Agency (TWRA), which had been funded by Osama bin Laden, and with which Sheikh Omar Abd-al-Rahman (the so-called “blind sheikh”) was involved. The Egyptian Sheikh Omar was convicted for his rôle in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing in New York. TWRA was founded in Vienna in 1987 and had links with the Izetbegovic Government in Bosnia-Herzegovina as well as with Dr Hassan al-Turabi and his terrorist operations in Sudan.

Yossef Bodansky’s seminal work, Some Call it Peace: Waiting for War in the Balkans (ISSA, 1996), noted: “In mid-January 1996, the Islamist leadership released a sermon of Sheikh Omar Abd-al-Rahman made on the eve of his sentencing (for his leadership rôle in the Islamist terrorist networks in New York in 1993). This sermon stressed the centrality of Bosnia and the Islamist cause and specifically threatened the US with terrorism in retaliation.”

When Zivalj became Ambassador to the UN in January 2001, he secretly and illegally gave special UN status to Catovic in New York, giving him the status and UN yellow pass [red passes are for attachés and other diplomats, up to first secretary; yellow is reserved for the Ambassador or Permanent Representative (PR) or Deputy Permanent Representative (DPR)]. This allowed him free access to the UN buildings. Zivalj kept this appointment secret, largely because it was illegal. Even under B-H laws, the post of DPR was reserved exclusively for Croats or Serbs in the event that the Ambassador (PR) was a Muslim.

Catovic’s UN pass was known to be due to expire in October 2003 [ie: it was current at the time of this GIS report]. It is important to note that the background of Catovic is not clear. He may not (in fact, is probably not) Bosnian by origin, having obtained his passport outside the country (in Vienna). Catovic, using his UN cover, acted as spokesman for two radical Islamist groups in the US; both groups were later shut down by the US Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). Significantly, Catovic has not been declared as a diplomat to the US State Department. It is understood that he has either a US Green Card or US citizenship. Before obtaining his UN cover, Catovic worked in the US. Given his known connections with the radical Islamist organizations, it has been suggested that he was involved with a number of Islamist training organizations which operated in New Jersey, on private property close to Trenton and Clifton.

These organizations participated in Zima 94-95 (Winter 94-95), which was labeled as an humanitarian operation, but which in reality was an operation initiated by Zivalj to provide logistical support for the Bosnian Muslim Army and foreign jihadists fighting in B-H against Serbs. This operation, in which Catovic was specifically listed [with his telephone number at the time: 908-874-8434] as one of the representatives, was specifically designed to provide all logistical support except weapons. As well, the operation was designed to funnel monies to public relations organizations to ensure that the Muslims were presented during the operations — which included the military operations in and around Srebrenica — in a positive light.

One of the funds with which Catovic was linked was The Global Medical Relief Fund, which actually gave its address as that of the B-H Mission to the UN: 866 United Nations Plaza, Suite 585, New York, NY 10017. The use of legation offices for private charities is in itself a violation of the Vienna Convention governing diplomatic missions. [This particular data from Islamic Fundamentalists’ Global Network and Modus Operandi: Model Bosnia study, produced by the Documentation Centre of Republic of Srpska, Bureau of Government of RS for Relations With ICTY (International Criminal Tribunal for Yugoslavia), September 2002. (hereinafter referred to as “Model Bosnia Study”).]

Catovic was also linked as a spokesman to Benevolence International Foundation, based in Palos Hills (Chicago), Illinois, in the US. BIF was founded Enaam (or Ennam) Arnaout to raise funds for various causes, many linked to terrorism. In November 2002, the US Treasury designated BIF and two closely-linked groups as “financiers of terrorism”, and blocked the organizations’ accounts. In February 2003, Enaam Arnaout pleaded guilty to racketeering charges. [See Defense & Foreign Affairs Daily, July 7, 2003: Al-Qaida-linked Terrorist Operations Escalate in Bosnia as US, International Officials Turn a Blind Eye.]

Catovic also organized a “Summer jihad camp in Pennsylvania” only a month before the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks. Importantly, one of Catovic’s interlocutors was Imam Siraj Wahaj, the spiritual father of the first (1993) attack on the New York World Trade Center. [Ref. “Model Bosnia Study”.]

Also listed as a key participant in Zima 94-95 was the B-H Consul-General in New York, Cemalovic Asim, who remains in New York, even though his duty was supposed to expire in 2001. Despite being replaced as Consul-General in 2001, he remained in the mission. His telephone number, listed in the Zima 94-95 documents, was shown as the B-H Mission to the UN [212-751-9015], not the consular number. 

Catovic was believed to have been paid a secret salary while in New York, and the B-H Mission to the UN paid his healthcare insurance until January 2002. The Bosnian-Serb First Secretary of the B-H Mission to the UN after Zivalj left the post, discovered the fact that Catovic had the UN “yellow badge” and was using the UN as a cover. He also discovered the use of the Mission as a cover for the “charities”. He then raised the matter with the new Ambassador, Mirza Kusljugic. Within two days of reporting these facts, he was dismissed from the post.

As a result, Catovic remains “protected” by B-H Ambassador to the UN Kusljugic, who took over the post after Zivalj. Significantly, Kusljugic was in the military presidency of the city of Tuzla during the war, and in 1992, during his term in Tuzla, military and mujahedin units under the control of the Presidency of which he was a member killed at least 200 captives from the then-Yugoslav Army (JNA). Kusljugic went on, subsequently, to participate in the preparatory commission for the International Criminal Court (ICC), which was subsequently to be used to attempt to bring United States officials under its authority.

The “Model Bosnia Study” noted of Kusljugic: 

“As a member of [the] Military Presidency [of] SDP [Social Democratic Party] Tuzla and member of [the] Military Presidency of the city of Tuzla, Mirza Kusljugic contributed with his treatments and actions to ethnical cleansing of Serbs and other un-Moslem population in [the] Tuzla region. Number of Serbian citizens depopulates from 22,000 in 1991 to 2,000 in 1995. ... he participated in making [the] decision on prohibition of Serb return to Tuzla, 1992. ... Mirza Kusljugic participated [in the] planning of attack on JNA convoy that was according to an agreement to leave Tuzla peacefully on 15 May 1992. On that occasion more than 200 officers and privates of former JNA were massacred. During the war, Mirza Kusljugic had directly cooperated with TWRA from Vienna. ... Mirza Kusljugic was engaged [in] misinformation and spreading [a] fake picture about [the] civil war in Bosnia and Herzegovina. As member of military headquarters, Mirza Kusljugic is responsible for crimes committed by units in which complement were mujahedins-Islamic fundamentalists, warrior of jihad.”

Equally, given the background of ambassadors Kusljugic and Jivalj, the original B-H Ambassador to the UN, Muhamed Sacirbegovic, who also served as Foreign Minister for the Izetbegovic Government, was reported by GIS sources to have brought in substantial amounts of cash, using diplomatic privilege, to the US to use to fund Islamist causes. Significantly, he allegedly appropriated some $2.5-million+ of the illegal funds for himself, causing the B-H Ministry of Internal Affairs to request that Interpol issue an international arrest warrant for Mr Sacirbegogic. He was dismissed as Ambassador in 2000, but allegedly still lives in the US. Sacirbegovic’s actions merely highlighted the fact that substantial funds were being transferred to Islamist movements using the B-H diplomatic cover.

Much of the new material unearthed by GIS remains to be translated, but this work is underway. The attached appendices, however, give some idea of the extent of the use of diplomatic channels of B-H by the Islamists to provide visas and passports to radical Islamists. GIS has a copy of an instruction from former B-H President Izetbegovic — a radical Islamist, who met several times with Osama bin Laden, and who pointedly represented only the Islamists in the new country, not the moderate Muslim community, nor the Croats or Serbs — in which he instructs Muslim ambassadors from B-H to give passports to anyone who would support his cause. These actions, quite apart from supporting international terrorism, directly polarized the new, delicately-balanced multi-ethnic state of Bosnia & Herzegovina.

[One case, cited below in Appendix (iii), is an application for passport by an individual listed as Abdulkarim Meslat, in which he said: “I hereby state that I feel as a citizen [italics added] of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, that I am prepared to obey the Constitution, laws and other regulations of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, practice all the rights and obligations of a citizen of Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, and protect the sovereignty and integrity of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina and its reputation in the international community. This statement is a freely given expression of my loyalty to the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, and desire to become a citizen of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina.”

Within this framework, apart from the links between the B-H officials and the original bombers of the New York World Trade Center in 1993, five of the known terrorist attackers on the US in 2001 had direct links through and with Bosnia, and literally all were supported by Bosnian-linked Islamist “charities”. The significance of the placement of Amb. Zivalj in New York in the brief period leading up to the September 11 attacks, and his departure shortly thereafter also cannot be overlooked. Nor can the links between the bin Laden and Iranian terrorist organizations with the Bosnian Islamists and the 1993 bombers who — as Yossef Bodansky pointed out in 1996 —  promised terrorist retaliation against the US.

Despite the clear warnings during the 1990s, however, the US Clinton Administration supported and encouraged the radical Islamists who were bent on attacking the US. 

Appendix (i):
Visas Granted to Muslims at B-H Embassy, Vienna, October 1997-February 2001

1. Imad Fayrouz El-Hamaoui - 18 April, Lebanon

PI 0340903 visa issued 22-28 October 1997

2. Khelili Mohamed – 5 March 1953, Algeria

Diplomatic Passport D0004663, visa issued 23 January - 23 July 1998

3. Jandali M. Murhaf - 12 December 1965, Syria

PI 2539185, visa issued 4 February - 4 March 1998

4. Amrmouti Sirsa M. – 1950, Jordan

Diplomatic Passport 005441, visa issued 10 March – 10 September 1998

5. Amjuti Mazen, 1950, Jordan

Diplomatic PI 005440, visa issued 10 March – 10 September 1998

6. Dadoukh Mohamed – 1941

PI H521131, visa issued 30 March – 30 April 1998

7. Nouridine Fath El Khair – 24 December 1964, Morocco

PI H809824 visa issued 30 March – 30 April 1998

8. Mohame Abdelati – 11 September 1955, Egypt

PI 5044525, visa issued 6 May – 11 May 1998

9. Raza Nadeem – 2 August 1970, Pakistan

PI 003263, visa issued 2-31 July 1998

10. Mohamed Elasoud – 11. September 1955, Egypt

PI 5044525, visa issued 10-13 August 1998

11. Farhat Ireille Antoun – 15 November 1954, Lebanon

DPI[1] 1201690, visa issued 2-5 September 1998 (private visit)

12. Naoufal Halim Khazen – 1948, Lebanon

DPI 0137983, visa issued 2-5 [September?] 1998 (private visit)

13. Al Faom Ghazi – 14 March 1962, Jordan

DPI 005682, visa issued 4 September – 4 December 1998 (official)

14. Dananatta Liyanage Chandradasa – 17 February 1939, Sri Lanka

Visa issued 18-28 September 1998

15. Muneeb Hassan Mohammed – 24 February 1966

PI 0847507/57, visa issued 10 October – 30 December 1998 (private)

16. Elafi Mustafa – 15 September 1937, Libya

PI675157, visa issued 5-11 October 1998

17. Abdulmogni Hasan – 15 April 1973, Yemen

PI 0135314, visa issued 1 November - 31 December 1998

18. Kugeprasahatam Sivapragasam- 10 March 1960, Sri Lanka

PI M1490594, visa issued 23 February – 15 August 199[] (gratis visa though not DPI)

19. Hadjnoukhal Mohamed – 1955, Morocco

PI K094754, visa 24. February - 24 March 1999

20. Bakri Dalati – 20 April 1964, Syria

PI 392278, visa 28 March – 28 April 1999

21. Draia Abdelmadjid – 26 March 1952, Algeria

DPI 0001181, visa 10 May – 10 November 1999

22. Saadi Abdellatif – 14. January 1953, Morocco

DPI A001168, visa 10 May – 10 November 1999

23. Sakander Javad – 2 February 1965, Pakistan

PI 982367, visa 28 May – 28 June 1999

24. El Sayed Mohamed – 24 April 1946, Egypt

PI 10162230, visa 14. June – 14 July 1999

25. Sardar Javed - 18 March 1968, Pakistan

PI F069384, visa 25 June – 25 July 1999

26. Mokadem Ghayas Knalona – 26. June 1970, Lebanon

PI 1136123, visa 10 July – 1 September 1999

27. Raza Nadem – 2 July 1970, Pakistan

PI A761462, visa 6-16 August 1999

28. Kazi Mustack Ahmed – 22 July 1979, Bangladesh

PI 0144193, visa 27 July – 27 August 1999

29. Unus Hussain – 10 March 1970, Bangladesh

PI M027739, visa 27 July – 27 August 1999

30. Monaj Mohananda – 5 March 1970, Bangladesh

PI 358629 visa 27 July – 27 August 1999

31. Mizanur Rahman – 23 August 1972, Bangladesh

PI 358629,[2] visa 27 July – 27 August 1999

32. Masud Rana – 7 November 1965, Bangladesh

PI 363914, visa 27 July – 27 August 1999

33. Monsin Hazi Abdul – 1 March 1973, Bangladesh

PI 568192, visa 27 July – 27 August 1999

34. Marty Adani – 23 March 1970, Indonesia

PI 446097, visa 30 July – 30 August 1999

35. Uttam Kumar – 1 January 1970, Bangladesh

PI 0777177, visa 7 August – 7 September 1999

36. Batchu Abul Hasem – 9 May 1968, Bangladesh

PI 0585838, visa 7 July – 7 August 1999

37. Khander Sofiul Alam- 7 May 1965, Bangladesh

PI 0583436, visa 7 July – 7 August 1999

38. Rafiqul Haque – 14. October 1970, Bangladesh

PI 0005362, visa 7 July – 7 August 1999

39. A. H. Pinto – 10 may 1968, Bangladesh

PI 0307644, visa 7 July – 7 August 1999

40. Yaseen Youst – 1 January 1962, Iraq

PI 0042256, visa 13 September 1999 – 3 January 2000

41. Murhaf Jandali – 12 December 1965, Syria

PI 3437730, visa 8 September – 8 December 1999

42. Khelili Mohamed - 5 March 1952, Algeria

PI D0355991, official visa 24 September 1999 – 24 March 2000 [diplomat]

43. Hassan Mohammed Muneeb, - 24 February 1966, Iraq

PI 0847507, visa 12 November 1999 -  12 May 2000

44. Mowad Joussef – 9 December 1963, Egypt

PI 822090, visa 28 December 1999 -  12 January 2000

45. Wasan M. Abbas – 24 June 1971, Iraq

PI 1000554, visa 25 January – 25 July 2000

46. Hussain Syed Atif – 1 September 1986, Pakistan

PI A103350, visa 17 May – 17 August 2000

47. Hussain Syed Asif – 26 December 1987, Pakistan

PI A103349, visa 17 May – 17 August 2000

48. Waseeq Talat – 28 July 1959, Pakistan

PI A103348, visa 17 May – 17 August 2000

49. Klelili Mohamed – 5 March 1952, Algeria

DPI 0006178, visa 10 July 2000 – 10 January 2001 (official)

50. Jasem A.M. Al Masri – 28 February 1952, Jordan

PI 477238, visa 1 August 2000 – 1 February 2001

51. Kanim Ahmad Jussein – 5 February 1961, Iraq

PI 082753, visa 3-31 August 2000

52. Raza Nadeem – 2 August 1970, Pakistan

PI A761462, visa 30 August – 30 September 2000

53. Tepe Erdal – 1 January 1971, Turkey

PI ROO150478, visa 4-13 September, 2000

54. Sultan Afsar – 1 April 1958, Pakistan

PI 097455, visa 27 September – 27 December 2000

55. Amjad Shahzad – 28 October 1972, Pakistan

PI 161693, visa 30 October -15 November 2000

56. Mohammad Ishthaq – 11 September 1965, Pakistan

PI FOO6533, visa 30 October -15 November 2000

57. Hussein Abdallah Aoun – 18 December 1943, Lebanon

PI 1140280, visa 3-17 November 2000

58. Ra Ed Mahmoud Mohammad Abu Yousef – 12 January 1973, Jordan

Pi T010085, visa 13 November -13 May 2001

59. Hamza Michel – 1 February 1976, Lebanon

PI 1568498, visa 20 December 2000 – 20 February 2001

[1] Code for “Diplomatic Passport” (tr.)
[2] Identical to previous passport number! (NB- tr.)

Appendix (ii): 

Embassy of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Vienna

EMB-AT-VIE 
Number: 203-02-1840-1/00 
Vienna, 24 August 2000. 
To Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Sarajevo

Subject: Omar Hatib [sic], verification of decision’s authenticity, information – relayed Re: Your memo number

MFA-BA-VPP-18021-03-11759/2000 dated 22 August 2000. 
Following the instructions from your memo, date and number referenced above, we inspected the documentation in the possession of the Embassy and established that the decision #564/95 dated 25 December 1995, granting Bosnia-Herzegovina citizenship to Omar Habit [sic], son of Sufijan [sic], born 15 July 1975, is authentic. The entire documentation related to this case is at this Embassy. Because of a clerical error, the name of Mr. Hatib was left out from the list earlier submitted to the MFA. On this occasion, we are also sending you the complete list of persons granted B-H citizenship by this Embassy.

Respectfully, 
Prof. Dr. Emina Keco-Isakovic, Ambassador 
[signed]  
Attachments: List 

Appendix (iii)

STATEMENT

(Given and Family Name) Abdulkarim Meslat

I hereby state that I feel as a citizen of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, that I am prepared to obey the Constitution, laws and other regulations of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, practice all the rights and obligations of a citizen of Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, and protect the sovereignty and integrity of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina and its reputation in the international community.

This statement is a freely given expression of my loyalty to the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina, and desire to become a citizen of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina.

In Vienna, 31 August 1994,
[signed] Meslat Abdulkarim
Official Present [ blank]
Signed by official: [signature illegible]
[stamped with official seal]

Appendix (iv)

Overview of members of the Seventh Muslim Brigade “El-Mujahid” of the Army of Bosnia-Herzegovina [ABiH], who received BH citizenship[1]

1. Abu El Jud Adnan, born 1960 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then settled in Bocinja, Maglaj municipality
2. Ali Awad Muhamed, born 1962 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then settled in Bocinja, Maglaj
3. Amrou Osmanchevic, born 1968 in Jordan, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then settled in Bocinja, Maglaj
4. Al-Saidi Muhamed, born 1961 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then settled in Bocinja, Maglaj
5. Ahmed Alkotry, born 1965 in Sudan, regulated citizenship based on fictitious residence in Novo Sarajevo municipality, then settled in Bocinja, Maglaj
6. Albany Teher, born in Kuwait, regulated citizenship based on fictitious residence in Novo Sarajevo municipality, then settled in Bocinja, Maglaj
7. Azedine Omerovic, born 1967 in Algeria, regulated citizenship based on fictitious residence in Zenica municipality, then settled in Bocinja, Maglaj
8. Aiman Awad, born 1964 in Syria, received BH citizenship on 23 March 1992 based on participation in ABiH [Translator’s note: it did not exist at the time!], settled in Bocinja, Maglaj
9. Alnaqli Khaled, born in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Zenica municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
10. Abdul-D’ail-ii Harj, born 1965 in Lebanon, regulated citizenship based on fictitious residence in Zenica municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
11. Amagad Joussef, unknown foreign citizenship, received BH citizenship, was resident of Bocinja, Maglaj
12. Ayad Osama, unknown foreign citizenship, received BH citizenship, was resident of Bocinja, Maglaj
13. Abdula Khaled, originally from Yemen, received BH citizenship, was resident of Bocinja, Maglaj
14. Aref Mestrovac, originally from Lebanon, received BH citizenship, was resident of Bocinja, Maglaj
15. Ali Saidi Muhamed, BH citizen, resident of Bocinja, Maglaj; purchased house from Serb resident
16. Ben Hamza Mourad, born 1972 in Sudan, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
17. Ben Radhia Nejmedine, born 1968 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
18. Ben Ina Khalifa Ben, born in Tunisia, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
19. Cshoumani Ousama, born 1968 in Jordan, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
20. Cakir Fahri, born in Turkey, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
21. Dar Khalifeh Jafar, born 1973 in Jordan, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj; now reported as resident in Brcko
22. Eslam Durmo, born 1964 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Old Town municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
23. El Wakil Ahmed, born 1971 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Old Town municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
24. El Hassiny Gamal, born 1962 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Old Town municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
25. El Monsoury Mohamed, born 1966 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Old Town municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
26. Essindar Abdulah, born 1964 in Yemen, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
27. El Karim Mohamed Ahmed, born 1971 in Sudan, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
28. El Guerhani Fatima, [woman] born in Yemen, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Novo Sarajevo municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
29. El Hachini Muhamed, born in Qatar, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-New Town municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
30. Ejman Abu Abdulrrahman, Syrian, age approx. 40, former medical student in FR Yugoslavia. According to Federation[-based] weekly “Dani,” of 16 December 1988 [sic – means 1998], Abdulrrahman had been an active member of “El-mujahid” from its inception, fighting in theaters around Kacun, Vitez, Zabrdje and Travnik [central Bosnia]. He had terrorist training in the Mehurici camp. Married to a Bosniak woman, he claims to have BH citizenship.
31. Fridhi Sami, born 1969 in Jordan, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
32. Fawzi Lordijane, originally from Lebanon, has BH citizenship, was resident of Bocinja, Maglaj
33. Fayez Souidane, originally from Lebanon, has BH citizenship, was resident of Bocinja, Maglaj
34. Gamal El Hassiny, citizen of B-H, resident in Bocinja, Maglaj, bought the house from a Serb
35. Hmaity Moh’d, born 1961 in UA Emirates, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
36. Hans Kreis, born 1959 in Luxembourg, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
37. Hamza Hasamudin, a.k.a. Abu Hamza, Palestinian, married to a Bosniak from Kozarac, Prijedor; father of two. In a statement for Federation[-based] weekly “Dani,” dated 16 February [sic] 1998, confirmed he was an active member of “El-Mujahid,” and that his BH citizenship was regulated on those grounds.
38. Hassan Ashraf, originally from Egypt, has BH citizenship, was resident of Bocinja, Maglaj
39. Hanchi Ammar, born 1965 in Djibouti, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Old Town municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
40. Imad Muhamad Al-Husein, born 1963 in Syria, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
41. Ibrahim Hosni, born 1961 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
42. Ismad Al Husein, a.k.a. Abu Hamza, Islamic mercenary; formerly resident of Bocinja, he received a large sum of money from the Federal [BH] Ministry for refugees and displaced persons in order to obtain housing in Sarajevo.
43. Inal Salih, originally from Turkey,  has BH citizenship, was resident of Bocinja, Maglaj
44. Khaled Barakat, has BH citizenship, resident of Bocinja, Maglaj; bought the house from a Serb;
45. Khalil Hodzic, born 1972 in Sudan, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
46. Jedari Salih, born 1965 in South Yemen, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
47. Kamel Rahala, born in Algeria, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
48. Kreis Magdalina, [woman] born 1958 in Switzerland, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
49. Kaled Al Safani, a.k.a. Sulejman, originally from Yemen, has BH citizenship; Expelled from Kuwait for links with notorious Islamic terrorist Osama Bin Laden; Resided in Bocinja; Indicated as one of the leaders in a Zenica-Doboj Canton car-theft ring, along with Ali Said Baawr, a.k.a. Hudeifa.
50. Maati Gamal, has BH citizenship, resident of Bocinja, Maglaj; bought the house from a Serb
51. Metwali Mamdouh, born 1967 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Old Town municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
52. Morsy Rokaya, born in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
53. Mohamed Begovic, originally from Tunisia, has BH citizenship, and resided in Bocinja, Maglaj; however, filed a change of residence with the Maglaj police;
54. Nabil Kal Bi, originally from Tunis, has BH citizenship; and resided in Bocinja, Maglaj; however, filed a change of residence with the Maglaj police;
55. Omar Badjaouvi, born in Sudan, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Novo Sarajevo municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
56. Pranvera Bardhosi, originally from Albania, has BH citizenship, was resident of Bocinja, Maglaj
57. Ridha Labidi, originally from Tunisia, resided in Bocinja, Maglaj; however, he filed a change of residence with the Maglaj police;
58. Raja Bargaoui, originally from Tunisia, resided in Bocinja, Maglaj; however, he filed a change of residence with the Maglaj police;
59. Skuorac El Aret, born 1971 in Egypt, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
60. Shela Marvana, [woman] originally from Albania, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
61. Zrigwe Homouda, born 1955 in Tunisia, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
62. Zubeir Behchic, born in the UA Emirates, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj
63. Querghi Mustapha, born 1961 in Tunisia, received citizenship based on fictitious residence in Sarajevo-Center municipality, then moved to Bocinja, Maglaj

NOTE: It has been continually noted in the media that Mirsada Zutic-Beganovic, executive at the Sarajevo Canton MIA, on 28 December 1995 approved BH citizenship for 103 persons of African or Asian origin. Facsimiles of the list and approval decisions have been published. At the time, the superintendent of the Sarajevo SSC was Enes Bezdrop, and the Federal Minister of Internal Affairs was Bakir Alispahic.

[Translator’s Note: Names of the mujahedin seem to reflect entries in forms, as they do not seem to follow any spelling convention. Most likely, the names were entered by Bosnian officials with dubious literacy in English or French, the languages likely found in the applicants’ passports. Following the former Yugoslav bureaucratic convention, B-H officials in several cases entered the family name before the given name, eg: numbers 29, 43, 50, 63, etc.]

[1] Most Islamic extremists received the BH citizenship at the time when the Federation B-H Ministry of Internal Affairs was led by Bakir Alispahic, and the Canton MIA by Ismet Dahic. Superintendent of the SSC Sarajevo was Reuf Jahic, with the involvement of Samir Rizvo, currently head of the Felonies department of the Sarajevo Canton MIA. Also involved in issuing identity documents to the mujahedin were Mugdim Vranac, Visoko police superintendent, and Asmir Hodzic, manager of the city cemetery in Visoko.