Thursday, January 29, 2015

Land Lords

Being a registered Canadian charity is apparently so lucrative that it allows one to snap up pricey real estate in desirable neighbourhoods. And when your stated mission is to "establish an Islamic presence in Canada that is balanced, constructive, and integrated, though distinct" (a distinctness that allegedly entails siphoning moolah to the likes of Hamas), buying as much property as possible is an excellent way to fulfill your goal:
MONTREAL -- A Muslim umbrella organization that allegedly funnelled money to a Hamas-linked charity is buying up property from Quebec to Alberta. 
QMI Agency conducted land-register searches that show the Muslim Association of Canada (MAC), based in the Toronto suburb of Mississauga, has bought at least 11 buildings in Ontario, Quebec and Alberta since 2006. 
They're being converted into mosques, community centres and schools as the group's financial dealings catch the attention of the RCMP. 
The group was named in a search warrant related to Project Sapphire, a probe into terrorist financing. Warrants indicates MAC sent nearly $300,000 in the 2000s to IRFAN-Canada, a group that raised millions for Hamas. 
The Canadian government considers both IRFAN-Canada and Hamas to be terrorist organizations.
The Muslim Association of Canada remained a registered charity as of this week, having reported $16.1 million in revenues, and a nearly $5.8 million payroll, in 2013...
[MAC has bought] more than $30 million of land and buildings across the country...
Montreal is home to its most grandiose purchase,
 a six-storey, $4.7-million building in Montreal's financial district that will house the Canadian Institute of Islamic Civilization.
The deal was closed last May and the institute will feature a library, a museum and "the largest mosque in downtown Montreal," according to its website. 
And guess what? Donations to the Institute are tax deductible.

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