FRANCAISInternational Islamic Relief Organisation of Saudi Arabia (al-Ighata al-Islamiya al-'alamiya) - Comments
2) The way it works
-Right from the beginning, the IIRO is structurally linked to the Muslim World League, whose secretary-general, Nassif Abdallah bin Omar, chairs the Council of the founding members of the NGO in 1978. In developing countries, both organizations often share the same logistics. To launch various projects in Somaliland in the 1990’s, for instance, the IIRO transferred funds to Hargeisa through the offices of the Muslim World League in Djibouti. The points of agreement between the two organizations do not only meet logistical issues, for the humanitarian NGO fully adheres to the proselytising mission of its religious counterpart. As an evidence of this double vocation, the secretary-general of the IIRO, Adnan Khalil Pasha, also manages the emergency relief of the International Islamic Council for Dawa and Relief, a structure set up by Saudi Arabia in 1988 and placed under the authority of the al-Azhar University in Cairo, with a view to coordinate the efforts of Muslim NGOs.
-From an operational point of view, the IIRO had nonetheless to make several concessions to the secular humanitarian community. To gain some legitimacy abroad, it therefore collaborated with the Dutch section of MSF (Médecins sans frontières) in various clinics, the UNHCR (United Nations High Commission for Refugees) in Burundian and Rwandan refugee camps in Tanzania, the UNICEF (United Nations Children’s Fund) to supply Iraqi Kurds with drinking water, etc., etc. In the same vein, the IIRO tried to join the international structures of the humanitarian community. To be specific, it was allowed to represent Islamic NGOs to the UNHCR, the ECOSOC (Economic and Social Council of the United Nations), the IOM (International Organization for Migration), the ICVA (International Committee for Voluntary Agencies) and the CONGO (Conference of NGOs), founded in 1948 to facilitate communication with the United Nations.
-As far as we know, the IIRO has not been officially forbidden in Saudi Arabia, despite the American pressure and the accusations of terrorism.
