Al-Qaeda made £50million from ransoms in three years, says British UN ambassador, as he urges Security Council to demand such payments stop

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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2518815/Al-Qaeda-50m-ransoms-3-years-says-British-UN-ambassador.html

Terrorist cell al-Qaeda has made £50million in ransom payments from kidnaps in the last three years, according to the British UN ambassador.

Mark Lyall Grant, the UK Government's representative in New York, revealed the shocking statistic as he attempts to persuade members of the United Nations security council to sign up to a blanket ban on the deals.

His claims were backed up by a top UN diplomat who said that ransom payments were now the biggest source of income for Northern Africa's al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb and al-Qaida in the Arabian peninsula.

Mr Lyall Grant is now urging member states to sign a resolution which calls on all countries not to pay ransom to kidnappers who use the money to finance terrorist groups.

The Ambassador circulated a draft resolution to the council on Tuesday calling on the 193 nations to 'prevent terrorists from benefiting directly or indirectly from ransom payments.'

A U.N. resolution adopted weeks after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States already bans all countries from financing terrorism.

But Lyall Grant said the proposed new resolution highlights 'the increasing threat' from kidnapping for ransom to benefit terrorists.

He said: 'We want to make it much more difficult for terrorists to benefit from this sort of financing.'

Lyall Grant hopes the Security Council of 15 members will approve the resolution this month.

The British resolution follows up on the communique issued by leaders of eight major industrial powers at their summit in Northern Ireland in June.

Then AQ sent most of the money to the DNC  and OFA 

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Then AQ sent most of the money to the DNC  and OFA