April 3 (UPI) — Federal immigration authorities have arrested the head of Wisconsin’s largest Islamic organization, the Trump administration announced Thursday, as it defends its detention of Salah Salem Sarsour, saying he allegedly lied on an immigration form about a previous conviction.
Sarsour, 53, has been the volunteer president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee for the last five years. His organization said he was “abducted” by Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers as he left his home on Monday.
His arrest comes as the Trump administration continues its aggressive immigration crackdown and is drawing condemnation from Muslim leaders and Democrats, some accusing the federal government of targeting Sarsour because of his religion and his support for Palestine.
In a statement announcing his arrest on Thursday, the Department of Homeland Security accused Sarsour of funding terror organizations, though no evidence was provided. It also accused him of lying on his immigration application.
The DHS said Sarsour had been arrested and convicted for throwing a Molotov cocktail at homes of Israeli armed forces and attempting to possess weapons and ammunition. His initial immigrant visa application at the American Consulate in Jerusalem was denied due to his criminal record, it said.
According to the DHS, Sarsour entered the United States in 1993 as a conditional resident and received a green card five years later after allegedly lying on his application. The DHS did not specify the alleged false statement, but implied it was related to his prior convictions.
“Salah Salem Sarsour is a terrorist convicted of throwing Molotov cocktails at the homes of Israeli armed forces,” Acting Assistant Secretary Lauren Bis said in a statement.
“This illegal alien from Jordan lied on his green card application to gain legal status in the U.S.”
The ISM argued in a statement that all immigration officials who have dealt with Sarsour when he entered the United States and since were aware of his record, while stating his was convicted in Israel on “fraudulent charges.”
His organization also said that he was seized by Israeli forces as a minor in his teens and was “subjected to Israeli brutality and torture” before being tried and sentenced in an Israeli military court.
ICE detained Sarsour because “the U.S. government is carrying out its stated objective of prioritizing Israel, criminalizing advocacy for Palestine and targeting individuals who speak up against Israeli atrocities and condemn complicit officials in our government,” it said.
“The fact that the present ‘Israel first’ U.S. government has chosen to target Mr. Sarsour after 32 years in the United States is unconscionable and illegal,” the ISM said.
“Had Mr. Sarsour not been targeted by Israel and its agents, he would likely be receiving accolades for his accomplishments.”
The Muslim Legal Fund of America, which is representing Sarsour, has filed a writ of habeas corpus as well as a temporary restraining order in the case. The MLFA alleges the Trump administration is using the immigration system to target individuals for protected speech related to Palestine.
“Salah immigrated to the United States nearly 33 years ago. The U.S. government fully vetted his visa application at that time. It is difficult to believe that DHS’ position now is not rooted in a violation of his First Amendment right to speak about the suffering of Palestinians in Gaza and the West Bank,” Kathryn Brady, head of the MLFA’s Immigration Litigation Department, said in a statement.
The MLFA, along with nine other leading U.S. Muslim associations, condemned Sarsour’s detention as a “troubling trend” they are seeing in the United States, accusing the Trump administration of “weaponizing” the justice system to advance the interests of Israel.
“We must be clear that Salah is being targeted on the basis of his Palestinian and Muslim background,” they said in a joint statement.
“We stand against this coordinated attempt to wield U.S. immigration courts to silence Palestinian voices and advance a racist anti-Muslim agenda.”
Hundreds of people congregated at the ISM in protest of Sarsour’s detention, state Rep. Ryan Clancy, a Democrat, said in a statement.
Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers is among those calling for Sarsour’s immediate release.
“Targeting people because of their beliefs or background is wrong,” he said in a social media statement.
“This is clearly about sowing division and fear and doesn’t help make Wisconsin safer.”
