Backgrounder On the Fiqh Council of North America and the Council on American-Islamic Relations
Fiqh Council of North America (FCNA)
Members of FCNA connected to Islamic extremism and terrorism
Abdurrahman Alamoudi
- Abdurrahman Alamoudi, head of the American Muslim Council and American Muslim Foundation, was a trustee of the Fiqh Council of North America[1], a fact which he omitted, along with several other associations to various other Islamic organizations, from his U.S. citizenship/naturalization application. He was subsequently convicted of immigration fraud based on those omissions and plead guilty to a plot in which he was going to assassinate the leader of Saudi Arabia on behalf of Al Qaeda associates in London. He was sentenced to 23 years in prison.
- On July 14, 2005, the Treasury Department issued a statement announcing that Alamoudi had facilitated the transfer of approximately $1 million to Al-Qaida from an organization called the Movement for Islamic Reform in Arabia (MIRA), a U.K.-based Saudi oppositionist group, a group designated a terrorist organization by Treasury.[2] The Treasury Department release stated that the arrest of Alamoudi was a “severe blow to al Qaida, as Alamoudi had a close relationship with al Qaida and had raised money for al Qaida in the United States.”[3]
- On September 29, 2003, Alamoudi was charged in the Eastern District of Virginia for illegal financial dealings with Libya, immigration fraud and tax evasion.[4] In July of 2004, Alamoudi plead guilty to three felony offenses[5] and admitted to taking part in a Libyan plot to assassinate Crown Prince Abdullah of Saudi Arabia.[6] In October of 2004 Alamoudi was sentenced to 23 years in prison.[7]
Taha Jaber Al-Alawani
· According to his website at the Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences (GSISS), Al-Alawani is the President of the Fiqh Council of North America and was previously President of the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT) in Herndon, Virginia.[8]
· Al-Alawani is an unindicted co-conspirator in the case against Sami al-Arian, the alleged North American leader of Palestinian Islamic Jihad, whose trial began in June 2005 in Tampa, Florida.
· Al-Alawani is an official of several organizations, including the SAFA Group, which the government suspects is related to a network of terrorist entities.
· In an affidavit filed in the Eastern District of Virginia by Senior Special Agent David Kane of the Immigrations and Customs Enforcement division of the Department of Homeland Security, Kane states “I have found information indicative of a conspiracy between Safa Group individuals and Sami Al-Arian to support and fund terrorists and terrorist groups including HAMAS and PIJ.”
· In the same affidavit, Kane cites a fatwa signed by Al-Alawani some time between December 1988 and November 1989 which stated, “the truth by the powers invested in us by Allah, that Jihad is the only way to liberate Palestine; that no person or authority may settle the Jews on the land of Palestine or cede to them any part thereof, or recognize any right therein for them.”[9]
· In a letter introduced into evidence at the trial of al-Arian, Al-Alawani affirmed financial and ideological support that Al-Alawani’s organization provided to al-Arian:
Honorable brother, I think we do not need to affirm that we consider you as a Group, you and brother Mazen [al-Najar] and brother Khalil [Shikaki, brother of PIJ founder Fathi Shikaki] and brother Bashir [Nafi ] and Brother Ramadan [Shallah, present head of PIJ] and Sheikh Abdel Aziz [Odeh, a founder and spiritual leader of the PIJ], a part of us and an extension of us, and us part of you and extension of you also, we never experienced any doubts about that since we knew you and we will continue like that.
And the matter of the financial support was never the basis of our relationship, for our relation added to the brotherhood of faith and Islam is an ideological and cultural concordance with the same objectives and all of your institutions are considered by us as ours, and they receive all the attention, and I explained to you the circumstances the institutions of your brother go through, and despite which we can truthfully say that we gave your institutions or our institutions that you manage more attention than institutions we manage by ourselves, because you are in an important positions without a doubt, and you deserve from us and our likes all cooperation, God willing . . .[10]
Sheikh Muhammad al-Hanooti
· Sheikh Muhammad al-Hanooti is a member of the Fiqh Council.
· From 1984 to 1986, al-Hanooti was the president of the Islamic Association for Palestine (IAP).[11] The IAP has a long history of links to Middle East terrorism and its financial support. A 2001 INS memo extensively documented IAP’s support for HAMAS and noted that the “facts strongly suggest” that IAP is “part of HAMAS’ propaganda apparatus.”[12] In August 2002, a federal judge ruled that there was evidence that “the Islamic Association for Palestine has acted in support of HAMAS.”[13]
· And most significantly, in December 2004, a federal magistrate judge held the IAP civilly liable for $156 million in the 1996 shooting of an American citizen by a HAMAS member in the West Bank.[14]
- According to an audiotape from a 1998 speech, Hanooti stated:
“At the moment, Dar al-Hijra is the greatest example in sacrifice, execution and in carrying out the Jihad that Allah calls for. Allah will give us the victory over our tyrannical enemies in our country. Allah, the infidel Americans and British are fighting against you. Allah, the curse of the infidel Americans and British are fighting against you. Allah, the curse of Allah will become true on the infidel Jews and on the tyrannical Americans.”[15]
Muzammil Siddiqui
· Muzammil Siddiqui is a member of the Fiqh Council[16], and has served as president[17]
· Siddiqui was also Chairman of the Department of Religious Affairs at the Muslim World League (MWL) Office to the United Nations from 1976 to 1980.[18] MWL has been linked by government documents and intelligence to terrorist groups including Al-Qaeda.
- On October 28, 2000 at a rally in Lafayette Park in Washington D.C., Siddiqui said, “America has to learn -- if you remain on the side of injustice, the wrath of God will come!”[19]
Jamal Badawi
- Badawi is a member of the Fiqh Council.[20] Badawi serves as vice chairman of the Islamic American University.[21] The Islamic American University is a subsidiary of the Muslim American Society (MAS). According to the MAS website, “it is one of MAS main projects.”[22] MAS commonly glorifies leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood[23] and distributes Muslim Brotherhood propaganda.[24] The Muslim Brotherhood is the ideological precursor to the major Sunni Islamic terrorist groups, including Hamas, Palestinian Islamic Jihad, and Al-Qaeda.[25]
· Badawi issued a fatwa authorizing a husband to physically punish his wife: "There are cases, however, in which a wife persists in bad habits and showing contempt of her husband and disregard for her marital obligations. Instead of divorce, the husband may resort to another measure that may save the marriage, at least in some cases. Such a measure is more accurately described as a gentle tap on the body, but never on the face, making it more of a symbolic measure than a punitive one.[26] One wonders why Badawi would restrict the physical contact from the face if he were expecting his followers to actually punish their wives with only a “gentle tap”?
Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is a public affairs organization based in Washington, D.C. CAIR is an offshoot of the Islamic Association for Palestine (IAP), a front for the Palestinian terrorist organization Hamas. It was created in 1994 by two leaders of the Islamic Association for Palestine (IAP). In August 2002, a federal judge ruled that there was evidence that “the Islamic Association for Palestine has acted in support of Hamas.” CAIR was also founded in part with donations from the Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, a Specially Designated Global Terrorist organization, as well as two Saudi organizations, the World Assembly of Muslim Youth and the International Islamic International Relief Organization. (See: Progress Since 9/11: The Effectiveness of U.S. Anti-Terrorist Financing Efforts [pdf] and Saudi Support for Islamic Extremism in the United States)
The Terror Ties of CAIR Officials, Fundraisers & Trainers:
Ghassan Elashi
- Ghassan Elashi was a founding Board Member of CAIR-Texas.[27] Elashi was also Chairman[28] and Treasurer[29] of HLF and Vice President of Marketing for Infocom, a computer export company.[30]
· Elashi was convicted on July 7, 2004 of six counts, including false statements, conspiracy to violate the Export Administrations Regulations and the Libyan Sanctions Regulations, and conspiracy to file false Shipper’s Export Declaration forms.[31] Infocom was found guilty on all ten counts with which it was charged.[32] Additionally, Ghasan Elashi and his brothers Basman and Bayan were found guilty of the Marzook-related charges on April 13, 2004.[33]
· Additionally, on July 27, 2004, Elashi, HLF, and six other HLF officials were indicted for providing material support to Hamas, engaging in prohibited financial transactions with a Specially Designated Global Terrorist, money laundering, conspiracy and filing false tax returns.[34]
Randall (Ismail) Royer
- According to a biography posted on IslamOnline.net, Royer began working as CAIR’s Communication Specialist in 1997.[35] He worked for CAIR at least through late October 2001.[36]
· On January 16, 2004, Royer was convicted of weapons and explosives charges in connection to a terrorist related offense.[37] He was sentenced to twenty years in prison.[38]
· While he was still working for CAIR, Royer purchased an AK-47 assault rifle and 219 rounds of ammunition, distributed newsletters for a group later designated as a foreign terrorist organization and fired at Indian targets in Kashmir, according to a federal indictment.[39]
Bassam Khafagi
· As late as November 1, 2002, Bassam Khafagi served as CAIR’s Director of Community Relations.[40] Nihad Awad claims that “Khafagi was never an ‘employee’ of CAIR. He was commissioned as an independent contractor for CAIR, effective November 2, 2001.”[41]
· Khafagi was arrested and indicted in January 2003 on bank fraud charges.[42] According to media reports, Khafagi was still employed by CAIR at the time of his arrest.[43] In September 2003, Khafagi pled guilty to bank and visa fraud[44] and a judge ordered him deported.[45]
· Khafagi also served as founding member and President of the Islamic Assembly of North America (IANA).[46] IANA is under investigation in the U.S. for money laundering and recruiting terrorists over the Internet,[47] and the FBI raided its offices in February 2003.[48]
Rabih Haddad
· Haddad served as a fundraiser for CAIR’s Ann Arbor chapter.[49]
· Haddad was co-founder of the Global Relief Foundation, whose assets the U.S. government froze on December 14, 2001 for financially supporting Al Qaeda.[50]After 9/11, CAIR asked people to donate to GRF to assist the victims of the attacks.[51]
· On December 14, 2001, the government took Haddad into custody, detaining him on a visa violation.[52] In November 2002, an Immigration Judge denied Haddad’s application for asylum, concluding that he presented “a substantial risk to the national security of the United States.”[53] According to the Treasury Department, Haddad was a member of Makhtab Al-Khidamat, the precursor organization to Al Qaeda.[54]
· In July 2003, Haddad was deported to Lebanon.[55]
CAIR CONSISTENTLY OPPOSES U.S. GOVERNMENT ACTION AGAINST INDIVIDUALS SUSPECTED OF INVOLVEMENT IN TERRORISM
CAIR vehemently defended alleged Palestinian Islamic Jihad mastermind Sami Al-Arian and alleged that his arrest was based on “political considerations.”
- On February 20, 2003, of South Florida professor Sami al-Arian Al-Arian was indicted for allegedly serving as North American leader of Palestinian Islamic Jihad (PIJ),[56] a U.S. government-designated terrorist organization that Attorney General John Ashcroft labeled “one of the most violent terrorist organizations in the world.”[57]PIJ is allegedly responsible for the deaths of two Americans and over 100 Israelis.[58]
- Despite Al-Arian’s documented history of extremism, CAIR officials have consistently defended him since his arrest. For example, appearing on MSNBC’s “Buchanan & Press” the day of Al-Arian’s arrest, Ibrahim Hooper suggested that the charges against Al-Arian were “politically motivated”:
I think the problem we're seeing is that the Israelization of American policy and procedures, the failed tactics of the Israelis, where, if you just kill a few more people, destroy a few more homes, seize a few more acres, everything will be OK. We don't want to take that and translate it into the American setting…The entire controversy began with the attack dogs of the pro-Israel lobby going after Sami Al-Arian…[59]
· On February 20, 2003, CAIR chairman Omar Ahmad said in a press release, “[w]e are very concerned that the government would bring charges after investigating an individual for many years without offering any evidence of criminal activity. This action could leave the impression that Al-Arian's arrest is based on political considerations, not legitimate national security concerns.”[60]
After Fawaz Damra was convicted for concealing his involvement in groups that advocated “violent terrorist attacks against Jews and others” on his citizenship application, CAIR-Ohio’s Executive Director defended him as a “great interfaith leader.”
· On June 18, 2004, Fawaz Damra, the Islamic Center of Cleveland’s Imam, was convicted of unlawfully obtaining his U.S. citizenship through a fraudulent application.[61] The indictment had alleged that Damra concealed from the INS his affiliation with: (1) Al-Kifah Refugee Center; (2) PIJ; and (3) Islamic Committee for Palestine (ICP).[62]As noted above, the Al-Kifah Refugee Center was established as the American-based affiliate of Mekhtab al-Khidemat, which after the end of the Soviet-Afghan war became Al Qaeda.[63] PIJ is a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization[64] and the ICP was a conduit for funds sent to PIJ to support terrorist activities.[65]
· At the start of Damra’s trial, CAIR Spokesman Ibrahim Hooper commented, “we’re concerned that all of his due process is maintained and evidence be free of religious or ethnic stereotyping…We’re always concerned when prominent leaders of the American Islamic community are charged, or detained or harassed.”[66] In September 2004, Damra was sentenced to two-months in prison[67]and stripped of his citizenship.[68]
CAIR defense of Hamas leader Musa Abu Marzook
· On August 7, 1995, the Deputy United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York requested the arrest and extradition to Israel of IAP founder Musa Abu Marzook (who was formerly the chief and is currently deputy chief of the Hamas Political Bureau).[69] Marzook was then arrested at Kennedy airport while returning from a trip to the Middle East.[70]
· As authorities mulled Marzook’s fate, CAIR came out in support of him. On May 10, 1996, Nihad Awad organized a press conference to support Marzook at which Awad said, “[t]he arrest, detention and extradition is politically motivated…[and] this campaign has been orchestrated to serve as a wedge between America and Islamic countries.”[71]
· In June 1996, CAIR signed an open letter to then Secretary of State Warren Christopher that railed against “the injustice that has prevailed against Dr. Marzook” and alleged that “our judicial system has been kidnapped by Israeli interests.” The letter added, “Dr. Abu Marzook is a political leader; no more, no less than any other political leader in the world…”[72]CAIR also labeled Marzook’s incarceration a hate crime in a 1996 report.[73]
CAIR defense of radical Imam Wagdy Ghoneim
· Wagdy Ghoneim is a radical Egyptian cleric who has been videotaped calling for suicide bombings at radical Islamic conferences.
· He has been denied entrance to Canada after immigration officials determined he was a member of Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood.[74] He also led the audience in a song with the lyrics, “No to the Jews, descendants of the apes,”[75] at the CAIR co-sponsored rally at Brooklyn College in May 1998.[76]
· Following Ghoneim’s arrest, CAIR Southern California Executive Director Hussam Ayloush defended him: “[t]he whole Muslim community today is under a microscope of scrutiny. Committing a mistake that would invite a slap on the wrist for anyone else could lead to prison or deportation for a Muslim.”[77]
CAIR has repeatedly championed Sheikh Yusuf Al Qaradawi, a leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, who has issued fatwas calling for attacks on American forces and killing Jews and mandating Jihad. (In 2000, Qaradawi was banned from visiting the United States.) As recently as July 26, 2005, in an interview on MSNBC, CAIR’s legal director Arsalan Iftikhar said:" For example, if you look at Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, the -- one of the most famous Muslim scholars in Cairo, Egypt, he has said unequivocally that people who commit suicide bombings and -- and acts of terror are completely outside the bounds of Islam."
Such statements are demonstrably false and reveal the true agenda of CAIR in trying to portray Islamic militants as "moderates" in public relations campaigns designed to deceive the American public.
Here are a sampling of Qaradawi fatwas and pronouncements:
· On July 13, 2004, on his weekly program on the Arab satellite channel Al-Jazeera, 'Shari'a and Life,' Qaradawi accused "the Jews" of permitting the spilling of Arab blood and of being oppressors, and he concluded, "There is no dialogue between us except by the sword and the rifle…"[78]
- In August 2004, Qaradawi signed a statement calling for the support of the terrorist “resistance” in Iraq to the American and Coalition forces, which stated:
“[t]hey emphatically reaffirm their full solidarity with the peoples of Iraq and Palestine and with their courageous and honorable Islamic and nationalist resistance. They call on both these resistance movements to rally and close ranks to confront the occupation ...They call on our Arab and Muslim peoples and on all the religious authorities and liberation forces everywhere to oppose the occupation and its savage crimes in Iraq and Palestine by providing all means of moral and material support to the honorable resistance and its jailed prisoners and their families and by being patient and steadfast until God's triumph comes -- and it is imminent, God willing -- and the land of Islam is cleansed of the desecration of the occupation.”[79]
- In March 2002, Qaradawi issued a fatwa on the “liberation” of “Muslim lands” from “disbelievers,” which stated the following:
“The meaning of Jihad in our present time particularly refers to striving to liberate Muslim lands from the grip of the disbelievers who usurped them and imposed on them their own laws in lieu of the Divine Law. Those disbelievers may be Jews, Christians or both or even pagans, who follow no particular religion at all. Disbelievers are all alike. Capitalists, Communists, Westerners, Easterners, People of the Book and pagans are by no means different from one other. They should all be fiercely fought if they attempt to occupy any part of the Muslim land.
“This duty falls on those closest to the occupied land, who should be aided by those closest to them, who, in turn, ought to be aided by those closest to them, till it becomes incumbent on all Muslims to take part in Jihad.
“Muslims have never been more severely afflicted than they are nowadays. Many of their lands have been captured by the disbelievers, on top of which is Palestine that has fallen victim to corrupt Jews. Similarly, Kashmir has been dominated by pagan Hindus. Chechnya and other Islamic states have fallen in the grip of pagan tyrannical communism.
“Retrieving these lands, freeing them from the clutches of atheists and their twisted laws is the joint responsibility of all Muslims. Declaring Jihad to save our land is an Islamic obligation. If war is waged anywhere to achieve this goal, namely to free the occupied lands of the laws and the tyranny of disbelievers, it is undoubtedly a case of Jihad for the sake of Allah.
“It thus needs to be financed from the money of Zakat, the amount of which is to be decided based on the total sum of the charity, the requirements of Jihad as well as the degree of the need of other potential recipients of charity. This is all to be decided by reliable scholars, if they are to be found.”[80]