 The Arab American National Museum
Survey: Arab and Jewish Americans Human Rights in the US | Thursday, September 4, 2008
Last updated: Thursday September 4, 2008, EDT 2:27 PM BY ELIZABETH LLORENTE, The Bergen RecordSTAFF WRITER  CHRIS PEDOTA / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
A prominent Muslim cleric whom federal authorities sought to link to a terrorist group has won his bid to call the United States his permanent home.
Calling the government's case "patently incomplete," a federal immigration judge in Newark ruled today that Mohammad Qatanani, the spiritual leader of the Islamic Center of Passaic County, can remain in the U.S.
The testimony of two federal agents in the case "is tainted by the lack of an accurate record and their inconsistent and contradictory testimony," Immigration Judge Alberto J. Riefkohl wrote in a 71-page decision.
Qatanani, 44, who is Palestinian, has served as Muslim religious leader at the mosque in Paterson since 1996, when he emigrated from Jordan on a religious worker visa. He applied for permanent U.S. residency in 1999 for himself, his wife and three of their six children who were not born in America.
U.S. immigration authorities had sought to deport the imam on grounds that he failed to disclose on his green card application a prior arrest and conviction in Israel for being a member of Hamas — a group classified as a terrorist organization by the U.S. government.
At the same time, elected and appointed officials of various stripes expressed support for Qatanani.
"My view is he's always had a very good relationship with us, and he's a man of great good will," U.S. Attorney Chris Christie said last night before exchanging traditional cheek kiss greetings with him and wishing him well during a breaking of the Ramadan fast in Paterson.
The evening turned into a tribute, as speaker after speaker paid Qatanani homage, sometimes to standing ovations. Many said they had never been in a mosque before the imam reached out to them, and they credited him for helping them gain access to and an understanding of the Muslim and Arab communities.
These included Weysan Dun, the special agent in charge of the FBI's Newark office; U.S. Rep. Bill Pascrell, D-N.J.; county prosecutors; sheriffs, and the director of the New Jersey Office of Homeland Security in praising Qatanani and the role of mosque members in building bridges with law enforcement in the wake of the Sept. 11 attacks.
During Qatanani's immigration hearing, Jewish, Catholic and Episcopalian leaders also testified that they viewed him as a moderate Muslim leader dedicated to interfaith outreach. Hundreds of his supporters kept a vigil outside the courthouse during his trial, which began in early May.
Lawyers for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security sought to portray Qatanani as a terrorist-affiliated Muslim activist, quoting a sermon he gave at the Paterson mosque in which he called Israelis "transgressors" and questioning his ties to his brother-in-law, a convicted Hamas terrorist who was killed by the Israelis.
Government lawyers also said Qatanani had been an outspoken university leader during his student days in Jordan.
Qatanani has denied being a Hamas member and said he was detained, not arrested, by the Israelis while traveling to his native West Bank in 1993. He said he was not notified of the charges against him nor his conviction.
Qatanani was in detention for three months, during which he says he was tortured and, under duress, forced to sign a document in Hebrew that he did not understand.
Judge Riefkohl found no credible evidence linking him to terrorism and wrote that family ties to a convicted terrorist do not make someone a terrorist. He said testimony in support of the imam from U.S. law enforcement officials made his application credible.
"The Court has to emphasize that the enigma in this regard is not created by Mr. Qatanani, his answers, nor his testimony," the decision reads. "This ambiguity is created by DHS, the FBI, other Federal Agencies and the Israeli government whose acts, cumulatively, have avoided disclosing to this Court the real and actual facts surrounding Mr. Qatanani's imprisonment in the West Bank in 1993."
Many have seen the government’s deportation efforts against Imam Mohammad Qatanani – who pushed for moderation and embracing non-Muslisms -- as evidence that Muslims and Arabs, regardless of their moderate views, are stereotyped as terrorist, or terrorist sympathizers.
“This will impact how our community deals with United States government officials," Aref Assaf, head of the Paterson-based American Arab Forum said before the judge's decision was released. "We have been working well with the FBI, the U.S. Attorney’s office, and immigration, mostly because of the imam and his encouragement to us to cooperate and work with the government.
“But if there is a negative decision, the cooperation will continue, but it will be different, not as close like before.”
Attention to the case also came from outside the community.
“We hope for the best in this decision,” Pascrell said last night, adding that he recently prayed with the imam for his situation. “It’s in God’s hands. We can’t always be happy with every decision that is made, particularly by government.”
Pascrell praised the imam, saying , “You put so much time into bringing peace for all of us. . . Thank you, imam, for all that you’ve done for America since you’ve come here.”
Passaic County Prosecutor James Avigliano said to the imam, “No matter what happens, you will always be my friend.”
Today's decision means that Qatanani, his wife and their three foreign-born children can now become legal permanent U.S. residents. Both parties have 30 days to appeal the ruling.
E-mail: llorente@northjersey.com |
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