The Golden Chain

The "Golden Chain" is a list of names that was seized in March 2002 in a raid by Bosnian police of the premises of the Benevolence International Foundation in Sarajevo. The Golden Chain has been interpreted as a list of purported sponsors of Al-Qaeda.

The list includes at least 20 top Saudi and Gulf States financial sponsors including bankers, businessmen, and former ministers. Part of the list includes a computer file titled "Tarekh Osama" or "Osama History", but the appellation "Golden Chain" itself is due to al Qaeda defector Jamal al-Fadl, who vouched for its authenticity.

Most accounts are vague on what year the Golden Chain document was written; some say 1988 but U.S. counter-terrorism advisor Richard A. Clarke says it dates from 1989. The "Golden Chain" was presented by the U.S. government in the criminal case United States v. Arnaout filed on January 29, 2003, and in other legal filings, which would cause its veracity and meaning to be brought under further scrutiny.

The names include:

Adel Batterjee is a wealthy Saudi businessman who is also the founder of both BIF and its predecessor, Lajnatt Al-Birr Al-Islamiah. He appears to be mentioned three times.

Their first names are not mentioned.

Al-Rasheed Trading & Contracting (Riyadh, Saudi Arabia)

Born in 1941, Mecca, Saudi Arabia, Saleh Abdullah Kamel is CEO of Jeddah-based Dallah Al-Baraka, the 3rd largest commercial entity in Saudi Arabia. Other notable affiliations include:

Samaa Abdul Aziz Ranjha is one of Saudi Arabia's leading commercial figures and philanthropists, overseeing a financial empire of some $28b in assets.

al Ranjha also created the Foundation.

Abdel Rahman Hassan Sharbatly was the founder of Riyadh Bank, the 2nd largest Saudi commercial bank. Other affiliations include:

Khalid bin Mahfouz was, before his death in 2009, one of the leading figures in Saudi banking circles.

Bin Mahfouz has written on his website that he has "never knowingly made any donation to Al Qaeda or to any organization or person acting on Al Qaeda's behalf or to any other terrorist organisation." He engaged in extensive litigation against individuals associating him with terrorism (see Khalid bin Mahfouz).

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