'Terror' charity faces third probe

A London-based charity providing aid to Palestinians is under investigation again over alleged links to militant Islamist group Hamas.

The Charity Commission has launched a formal probe into Interpal, which supplies relief and development aid to Palestine and its refugees.

Respect MP George Galloway picked Interpal as his chosen charity when he appeared in Celebrity Big Brother and raised £1.3 million.

The Charity Commission confirmed that an investigation began earlier this month to look at any "indirect and inappropriate" links between the charity in north-west London and supporters of Hamas.

A spokesman for the commission said: "We have not frozen the charity's assets and at this stage we do not intend to do so."

US authorities named Interpal a "specially designated global terrorist" in August 2003.

But two previous investigations by the Charity Commission found no evidence of links between the charity and terrorism.

The new investigation follows claims made in a BBC Panorama programme in the summer.