Posted on 11/17/2003 2:00:53 PM PST by areafiftyone
A group of Italian anti-war militants is raising funds to support the armed Iraqi resistance, the BBC has learned.
The discovery comes as Italy mourns 19 men killed in a suicide attack in Iraq last week.
The "Antiimperialista" organisation's internet campaign asks people to send "10 Euros to the Iraqi resistance".
Nineteen Italians were killed in last week's suicide attack in Nasiriya
They say they have collected 12,000 euros ($14,165) in the past eight weeks and admit the money used could be used to buy weapons.
The Antiimperialistas are a group of European anti-war and anti-globalisation supporters.
They are currently organising an anti-war demonstration in Italy next month, and it remains to be seen whether news of the fund-raising activities will deter more moderate anti-war activists from attending.
The organisation's Italian branch says the money will be given to an Iraqi resistance group known as the Iraqi Patriotic Opposition.
Independent Iraqi sources in London say the leaders of this group have a long history of association with the Baath party and are now back in Iraq supporting the armed resistance.
To think there are people in Italy collecting money in order to kill our heroes is really a shame
The Italian spokesman of the antiimperialistas, Moreno Pasquinelli, says the money collected so far is in an Italian bank account.
Mr Pasquinelli said it would be taken to Iraq in January. He was candid when asked about raising money for the Iraqi Patriotic Opposition which says it actively supports military resistance.
"Its not our affair how they use this money. If they want to use it to print papers for example, or to buy weapons in order to fight for the Iraqi independence," he said.
"We support the armed struggle in Iraq. our money is to help them, it doesn't matter to us if they use it buy weapons, Kalashnikovs, or medicines for people."
When asked to confirm if the money raised could be used to buy weapons he admitted: "Yes they could, and why not?"
Shame
The Italian Interior Ministry refused to comment, saying the matter was with the security services.
The campaign contrasts with the mood of mourning in Italy Lucio Malan, a senator from the governing Forza Italia Party, was shocked to hear about the campaign.
"The first word that comes to my mind is shame and horror," he told BBC Radio Four's Today programme.
"They are raising money against people (Italian troops) who are defending the peace, the security of the people of that country. They have not killed or wounded anyone in that country they are helping to take away unexploded bombs."
He said the group's activities "collecting money to give it outspokenly to terrorist groups" was certainly illegal in Italy.
These monsters just killed 19 of our countrymen!!!
I know, let's support them now.
This is madness. even for the the Euro-left
May the Carabinieri get a whack at these punks.
That's the fact, Jack.
"You can't make this up?"
Book 'em, Mario.
...the reward they are being offered for killing one American has had to be raised from $300 to $5,000.
Plutarch wrote:
I wonder where that money is coming from. I wonder specifically whether some money might be coming Left Wing sources who don't care anything about Muslims, but who do want to wrest the Presidency away from a Republican, and put it in the hands of a Democrat/Socialist.
This plus the continued cowardly attacks in Iraq, which just feed the far-left, just have me in a funk. I have no solution
Despair :(
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