Youssef Nada

Who is Youssef Nada?

Youssef Moustafa Nada is a noted businessman and Muslim Brotherhood financial strategist. Nada is most famous for raising successful European human rights legal cases to defend himself against accusations of terrorism by the United States. The U.S. accusations, made directly after the 9/11 attacks, resulted in his placement on the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267 terror blacklist.

In 2001, Nada, former chairman of al Taqwa Bank, was placed on the UN terror list by the US Treasury Department. Nada was alleged to have financed activities of al Qaeda, charges Nada vehemently denied. The U.S. accusation was made applicable under the UN terror-listing program and affected his life in Switzerland, notably his assets, reputation, honor, and ability to move freely. In 2006 he sued the Swiss government for restitution of financial losses due to the Swiss investigation.

By 2009, both the Swiss and Italian investigations of Nada were dropped as no evidence was found to support the U.S. accusations. Both Switzerland and Italy petitioned the UN Terrorism Committee to remove Nada's name from the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1267 blacklist, at the objection of the United States. The U.S. finally acquiesced to his removal on September 24, 2009, but retained Nada on the domestic U.S. Treasury list under Executive Order 13224.