COUNCIL OF ISLAMIC ORGANIZATIONS OF GREATER CHICAGO
231 S. State Street, Suite 300
Chicago, Illinois 60604, 312-506-0070

Press Release
1 February 2007

The government should Apologize to Muhammad Salah and Withdraw His Designation As A Terrorist

Verdict Shows That Palestinians Can Get Some Level of Justice in Chicago

For Immediate Release

Chicago, Illinois - The Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago, a federation of over fifty Muslim organizations, has greeted the jury's verdict in the case of Mohammed Salah with relief.

“We applaud the jury for taking the difficult task of this case seriously and methodically, and providing a just ruling,” said Council Chairman Abdul Malik Mujahid, adding, “It’s clear that the jury was able to transcend the Islamophobic atmosphere that has been created by the current government's policies and the media , especially in the last five years.”

The government's persecution of Mr. Salah began by declaring this U.S citizen a terrorist through an executive order without any court of law finding him as such. This was soundly rejected by the jury today. Despite the use of Israeli torture, secret evidence and former Attorney General, John Ashcroft’s incitement in the press that Mr. Salah was running a “U.S.-based terrorist-recruiting and financing cell” Mr. Salah has been proven innocent of any connection to terrorism in the United States or abroad.

“The President, with whose signature Mr. Salah was declared a terrorist without any trial, owes Mr. Salah and his family an apology for making their lives miserable. Great injustice has already been done. Now, following the spirit of this verdict, the government needs to withdraw Mr. Salah’s designation as a terrorist and allow this family to put the pieces of their life back together instead of sending him to prison on lesser charges.”

“The Salah case is yet another example of the government publicly declaring war against terrorism by indicting innocent American Muslims, only to dismiss or drop these charges to lesser, minor crimes,” said Mujahid. The prestigious Social Science Research Council examined more than 300 prosecutions of individuals on terrorism-related charges, and found virtually none that were involved in a plot against America. It is about time that our country began debate about its growing level of Islamophobia.

History has shown that such heavy-handed government persecution of minorities, such as the internment of Japanese-Americans during WWII and Jim Crow laws are ultimately counter-productive, unjust and eventually overturned. The Council reminds all Americans that in the war on terror, sacrificing innocent lives for the sake of appearances does not support democratic values.

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The Council of Islamic Organizations of Greater Chicago
CIOGC
231 S. State Street #300
Chicago IL 60604
Phone: 312-506-0070

The Council is a federation of 54 Muslim organizations serving 400,000 Muslims in the Greater Chicago