OTTAWA, Dec. 18 (UPI) -- A new report by the Canadian government's Integrated Threat Assessment Center says terrorist groups may be funding operations from an illicit drug trade.
The ITAC report, "Khat: Connections to Terrorism?" says terrorists are receiving funding through smuggling of khat, an illegal stimulant smuggled into Canada from the Horn of Africa and Yemen. Officials say the leafy shrub is popular among Somali-Canadians according to the intelligence report, the National Post reported.
"Given that a number of terrorist organizations around the world finance their activities through the drug trade, and that much of the khat trade occurs in and emanates from a region of the world closely identified with terrorism, it is possible that some parts of the proceeds involved may end up in the hands of terrorists or their sympathizers," the report said.
Officials say in 2006, 14 tons of khat was seized in Canada, most of it coming to Canada aboard passenger and cargo planes.
"It is possible that some terrorist financing occurs through involvement in the local or regional khat trade, either directly in the cultivation, transport and distribution of the drug, or indirectly, such as levying fees or taxes for transport or access," the report said.
