By Douglas Farah*

As my colleague on the CT [Counterterrorism] Blog, Vic Comras noted, the name of Dawood Ibrahim is now associated with the terrorist attacks in Mumbai.

Ibrahim reportedly provided the initial boat for the attackers, and has strong ties to al Qaeda.

What is interesting about Ibrahim, who has been designated a terrorist by OFAC and many other governments, is that he is a pioneer in the criminal-terrorist nexus. For many years he has provided the criminal links al Qaeda, the Taliban and Pakistani terrorist groups have needed to move money, personnel and equipment. Despite how well known his activities are, he has never been apprehended.

Here is something I wrote about him more than two years ago, which helps shed some light on a person identified as a terrorist and criminal mastermind.

Ibrahim, with his immense wealth, underworld connections, and ties to Bollywood, was one of the first big fish to cross over to work with radical Islamists, starting more than a decade ago:

A criminal kingpin, ally of al Qaeda, large-scale drug runner and financier of some of Bollywood’s biggest movies, Ibrahim loves to hang out with movie stars and live the good life. Not exactly a natural ally of radical Islamist groups, but he appears to provide the muscle and know-how to attacks, rather than being the intellectual author of the violence he has participated in. His ideology seems more firmly wedded to his financial well-being than to his religious beliefs. My full blog is here.

*Counterterrorism Blog
December 1, 2008
http://counterterrorismblog.org/2008/12/
the_importance_of_the_dawood_i.php
Cross-posted with permission