Don’t most Muslims give the zakat freely, and want it to go to truly charitable causes, and not to terrorism?
It is hard to say whether it is freely given, because the eternal consequences of not giving as laid out by the Koran are so grim. As for whether the givers intend to support jihad, we have no real way of knowing. Certainly, many Muslims only want their money to go to good, charitable causes, but one-quarter of Muslims worldwide “express confidence” in Osama Bin Laden, according to Pew Research Center. That’s more than one-quarter of a billion Muslims who support Bin Laden. Of course, many Muslims are unaware of how their donations are really used. Terrorist organizations like Al Qaeda use “charitable” front groups to siphon zakat payments for jihad. That is why American Muslims and organizations like CAIR should be jumping up from their seats clamoring for deep, penetrating audits of mosques and Islamic charities so they can see exactly where God’s gifts are going. But instead, we’re greeted with silence or outright opposition to the meager restrictions that have been placed on Islami
