UAE takes news measures against money laundering

The United Arab Emirates said on Thursday it had approved new measures to combat money laundering and financing of militant groups.

Since the Sept. 11 attacks, the United States has leaned hard on Gulf countries, among others, to tighten controls in their financial systems to choke off terrorist finance. One of the 19 attackers was from the UAE.

Free zones and economic departments in the UAE, a federation of seven semi-autonomous "emirates", have been asked to make sure their regulatory measures conform with international moves to combat the phenomenon, the state news agency WAM said.