Lawyers call ruling setback for free speech rights
An immigration judge ruled Tuesday night that Salah Sarsour, president of Wisconsin’s largest mosque and a US permanent resident for nearly three decades, is removable from the United States under a cold war-era statute the Trump administration has wielded against foreign nationals outspoken about Palestinian rights. The ruling came in a separate immigration case the administration pressed forward after a federal court found his March detention by Immigration and Customs Enforcement was probably retaliation for his advocacy.
Sarsour was taken into ICE custody in March and held for roughly three months before a federal judge ordered his release on June 18. The federal judge concluded he had “probably” been detained in retaliation for his advocacy for Palestinian rights — a finding that, the judge said, would render his detention unlawful. The Department of Homeland Security nonetheless pressed the separate immigration case to a removal hearing.
Immigration Judge Jayme Salinardi, brought in from out of state to oversee the case, issued the “removable” finding and announced he would be retiring shortly after the decision. The Department of Homeland Security did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Tuesday night’s ruling. Before the hearing, the department had publicly claimed Sarsour was “suspected of funding terror organizations and lying on immigration forms” — allegations Sarsour has denied.
In a statement after the decision, Sarsour’s attorneys called the ruling “a setback for free speech rights.” Patrick Taurel, one of his attorneys, told a press conference that the evidence “compels only one conclusion, which is that Salah is not deportable, he has done nothing wrong,” and that Sarsour should be given back his green card “with an apology for what’s been done to him.” Luna Droubi, another attorney, said the administration was “retaliating against him for speaking out about Palestinian human rights” and added, “That should terrify all of us.” Droubi said the principle that “people should feel that they can speak freely” was “being eradicated.”
When DHS arrested Sarsour, it cited decades-old military court convictions in Israel for, it said, “throwing a Molotov cocktail at the homes of Israeli armed forces and illegally attempting to possess weapons and ammunition.” Sarsour has said those accusations stemmed from an arrest as a teenager by Israeli soldiers in 1989, during the first intifada. He has also said he was forced, under torture and threat of rape, to sign documents in Hebrew without understanding them. He ultimately spent two years in an Israeli prison after being convicted in a military court system that, his lawyers noted, has a conviction rate of over 96% for Palestinians. Sarsour was detained by Israeli authorities for nearly three months on a subsequent visit in 1995. His lawyers said the US government had known about the Israeli arrests for years.
In addition to his involvement with several local organizations, Sarsour is a board member of American Muslims for Palestine, a national advocacy group that Trump administration officials have accused of countering US foreign policy interests.
Sarsour, who has six children and nine grandchildren, all US citizens, called the decision “deeply disappointing” but said he would “continue fighting.” In remarks to the Guardian in July, he said: “We have a mission: let’s continue to make our voice clear, to protect the first amendment, to support justice. I’ll continue with that message whether I’m inside or outside.”