Free Republic

Non-profit humanitarian agency World Vision United States improperly transacted with the Islamic Relief Agency (ISRA) in 2014 with approval from the Obama administration, sending government funds to an organization that had been sanctioned over its ties to terrorism, according to a new report.Senate Finance Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R., Iowa) recently released a report detailing the findings of an investigation his staff began in February 2019 into the relationship between World Vision and ISRA.The probe found that World Vision was not aware that ISRA had been sanctioned by the U.S. since 2004 after funneling roughly $5 million to Maktab al-Khidamat,...

The Obama administration approved a grant of $200,000 of taxpayer money to an al-Qaeda affiliate in Sudan, the Middle East Forum (MEF) discovered. The grant was approved ten years after the US Treasury designated the Islamic Relief Agency (ISRA) as an organization which funds terrorists. Government officials also authorized the release of at least $115,000 of the grant after they realized that the Khartoum-based ISRA was on the Treasury’s list of terror organizations. ISRA, also known as the Islamic African Relief Agency (IARA), was designated as terror-supporting organization in October 2004, due to its connection with Osama bin Laden and...

ILLINOIS STATE RIFLE ASSOCIATION INFORMATIONAL ALERT WHAT TO DO ABOUT THOSE PESKY “NO-GUNS” SIGNS As you may know, the concealed carry law enacted last year ironically includes provisions that will greatly impede your ability to defend yourself against violent criminals. Among these impediments to self defense is a provision allowing private property owners to prohibit concealed firearms on their property. The law requires such property owners to post government-approved “no guns allowed” signs on property entrances. As implementation of concealed carry goes forward, more and more of these “no guns allowed” signs will be springing up in businesses across Illinois....

Illinois --(Ammoland.com)- Cliff or no cliff- that is the question. Today we should see revised language for HB0183. As all of you know we have been working very hard for concealed carry for a very long time.For me it has been 27 years and for others like Jim Vinopal it has been twice that long. Today at some time we will see language for an amendment to HB0183. We will all have to read the bill and decide if we can support it or not or just remain neutral . For me 27 years of work will have to be decided...

ISRA Press Release: One Rampage Too Many - Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy Has To Go CHICAGO, March 31, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following was released today by the Illinois State Rifle Association (ISRA): The ISRA is once again calling upon Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to fire Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy . This latest call for McCarthy's ouster comes after a mob of young thugs - estimated to be in the hundreds - swarmed the Magnificent Mile shopping district Saturday night and began beating dozens of innocent shoppers. This latest mob action appears to be the most serious in a string...

Thursday, July 8, 2010 A former congressman pleaded guilty Wednesday to serving as an unregistered agent in Washington for a Missouri-based Islamic charity that the federal government said had ties to international terrorism. It was an odd outcome for Mark D. Siljander, who said he wanted to help bridge the gulf between Muslims and Christians. A Republican who attained one of Michigan's congressional seats from 1981 to 1987 with assistance from the Moral Majority, Siljander was outspoken about conservative social issues. Siljander confirmed in a Kansas City, Mo., court that he contacted members of Congress in an effort to lift...

OUT OF EGYPT: A Christian Analysis of Obama’s Cairo Speech Part 3 - Why the Story of Isra? The last part of Obama’s Cairo address to the Muslim world, was a reference to the Koranic story of the Isra of Mohammed. All of us have a responsibility to work for this day when the mothers of Israeli’s and Palestinians could, can see their children grow up without fear, when the Holy Land of the three great faiths is the place of peace that God intended it to be, when Jerusalem is a secure and lasting home for Jews, Christians and...

ISRA alerts about Wheaton gun control effort Illinois State Rifle Association is concerned about an event Tuesday evening in Wheaton. The California-based anti-gun group, Legal Community Against Violence, will be holding a gun control forum in Wheaton, IL, on Tuesday, April 21st. The purpose of the forum will be to blame law-abiding gun owners for criminal violence and spread lies about private firearm ownership. During this forum, the anti-gunners will do the following: They will blame you, the law-abiding firearm owner, for the Columbine murders! They will blame you, the law-abiding firearm owner, for the Virginia Tech murders! B They...

All Illinois gun owners are invited to join in Illinois Gun Owners Lobby Day (IGOLD) in Springfield in 2009. This is an annual event where everyone goes to lobby their representatives in the Illinois House and Senate. The ISRA is partnering with local and internet organizations in Illinois to increase attendance and make a bigger & better impression in Springfield. The other participating organizations are Illinois Carry and Champaign County Rifle Assoc. Get your local organization involved as well! We will meet at the Prairie Capitol Convention Center - Doors open at 11:00 with the program set to begin at...

Illinois State Rifle Association Executive Director Richard Pearson Issues Open Letter to Nation's Sportsmen Regarding Obama's History in the Illinois Senate Last update: 1:06 a.m. EDT Oct. 15, 2008 CHICAGO, Oct 15, 2008 /PRNewswire-USNewswire via COMTEX/ -- The following is the text of an open letter to the nation's hunters and sportsmen issued today by Illinois State Rifle Association Executive Director Richard Pearson: Fellow Sportsman, Hello, my name is Rich Pearson and I have been active in the firearm rights movement for over 40 years. For the past 15 years, I have served in the Illinois state capitol as the...

420 E. Locust, P.O. Box 637, Chatsworth, IL 60921 Phone: (815) 635-3198 or (815) 635-3166 Fax: (815) 635-3723 Website: www.isra.org Dedicated to education, safety training and support of Illinois firearm owners October 10, 2008 Fellow Sportsman, Hello, my name is Rich Pearson and I have been active in the firearm rights movement for over 40 years. For the past 15 years, I have served in the Illinois state capitol as the chief lobbyist for the Illinois State Rifle Association. I lobbied Barack Obama extensively while he was an Illinois State Senator. As a result of that experience, I know Obama’s...

'Nobody Knows Obama's Record on Guns Better Than I Do,' Says ISRA Executive Director Richard PearsonSPRINGFIELD, Ill., Sept. 24 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The following was released today by the Illinois State Rifle Association (ISRA): "One of the most blatant lies ever to come from a politician's mouth," is how the ISRA is characterizing a recent statement by U.S. Senator Barack Obama. Speaking in the latest issue of "Field & Stream," Obama claims that Illinois sportsmen know him as an advocate for their rights. On the contrary, Obama's voting record while a state senator clearly indicates that he has nothing but...

(CNSNews.com) - Following Thursday's Supreme Court ruling on gun rights, Second Amendment groups are preparing to challenge gun bans in cities other than Washington, D.C. The Second Amendment Foundation (SAF) and the Illinois State Rifle Association (ISRA) announced Thursday they already have filed a federal lawsuit challenging Chicago's long-standing handgun ban. The case is McDonald v. City of Chicago. The National Rifle Association has said it also plans to challenge gun bans in Chicago and San Francisco. "Chicago's handgun ban has failed to stop violent crime," said SAF founder Alan Gottlieb. In Chicago, it is illegal to possess a handgun...

Thousands of gun rights activists march on state hill Firearm owners from around Illinois rally against gun control legislation at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, Ill., Tuesday, March 11, 2008, (AP Photo/Seth Perlman) Tuesday, March 11, 2008 8:16 PM CDT By Mike Riopell mike.riopell@lee.net SPRINGFIELD -- The issue of gun regulation excites thousands on either side of the debate, but lawmakers acknowledge political realities in Springfield mean changes in state gun laws could be tough to achieve this year. Tuesday brought thousands of activists to the Illinois State Capitol asking lawmakers to resist putting more restrictions on gun ownership....

 A federal grand jury in Kansas City has issued a new indictment against an Islamic charity based in Columbia---and has added a former Michigan congressman to the list of people indicted.The new indictment accuses the Islamic American Relief Agency and several former officers of of engaging in prohibited financial transactions for the benefit of a terrorist. The indictment charges former Michigan Congressman Mark Deli Siljander with money laundering, conspiracy, and obstruction of justice.Federal officials say the charity sent money to Pakistan to benefit a man designated by the United States as a global terrorist. The prosecutor says the man had...

A British charity has been accused by the American government of financing Osama bin Laden, al-Qaeda and the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas. The Islamic Relief Agency (ISRA), which is based in Birmingham and provides aid for orphanages and water wells in countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, has been designated by the United States treasury as being part of a network of "terrorist" charities that have allegedly "provided hundreds of thousands of dollars to Osama bin Laden". The Telegraph has also discovered that Yusuf Islam, the singer formerly known as Cat Stevens who was refused entry to America last...

GENEVA — The U.N. agency for refugees has severed relations with two private relief organizations, one working in Sudan and another in Afghanistan, over suspected links with terrorist organizations. A report by the inspector general's office at the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says the agency discontinued its relations with the two organizations and that follow-up action was taken with the regional bureaus concerned. Relations were severed with Benevolence International, a group operating in Sudan, and with Islamic Relief Association (ISRA), operating in Afghanistan and maybe in Sudan, according to senior diplomats interviewed this week who asked not to...

A Chicago-area homeowner who shot a burglar in his home - only to be charged with gun violations - has spurred gun groups and lawmakers into action. The Illinois State Rifle Association is backing legislation that would shield law-abiding citizens from prosecution under "politically motivated gun control laws." SB 2165, sponsored by Sen. Ed Petka (R-Plainfield), is intended to protect individuals who are charged with breaking municipal gun laws - if the individual used the gun in the act of defending himself or someone else. The bill was drafted in response to a controversial shooting in Wilmette, a Chicago suburb,...

ISRA PAYS HUGE $98,000 JUDGEMENT TO ICHVRefuses insurance company payoff contingent upon removal of Vandermyde, Flanagan from Board Chatsworth, IL (GunNews) The Illinois State Rifle Association Second Vice-President Todd Vandermyde and former director Peter Flanagan had a good idea when they registered a new, gun-rights friendly "Illinois Coalition Against Handgun Violence, Inc." with the Secretary of State's office in 2002. The "old" ICHV had failed to properly renew its corporate registration with the State of Illinois in 2001 and as such, the 25-year-old corporation which lobbied tirelessly against civil rights technically no longer existed. Problems arose in May and June...

Judge awards $98,000 in ISRA funds to handgun control group Monday, March 24, 2003 By The Leader-Chicago Bureau The Illinois State Rifle Association faces paying $98,000 in legal fees to a handgun control group. SPRINGFIELD -- Illinois State Rifle Association members may have to come up with $98,013.20 to pay legal expenses of the Illinois Council Against Handgun Violence for what the ISRA called “an overly cute joke.” Federal Judge James Zagel, formerly with Governor Jim Thompson’s administration, ruled the state affiliate of the National Rifle Association and certain individuals had to pay almost $100,000 in legal fees in a...