DHS Says He’s a Terrorist. His Lawyers Say He’s Being Punished for Palestinian Advocacy.

On March 30,  Salah Sarsour, a Palestinian-born community leader and the president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee, was detained by multiple Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents while on his way to work. Now, his attorneys allege that the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has deprived the legal permanent resident of religious freedoms and basic medical care for his Type 2 diabetes while incarcerated.

In a letter recently submitted to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Indiana, Sarsour’s lawyers claim that the 53-year-old’s health has deteriorated while in custody at the Clay County Jail in Brazil, Indiana. Sarsour, the letter says, has experienced severe abdominal pain, but has not been allotted any medical assistance and has lost 30 pounds during his two months in detention.  

“Though he recently developed severe abdominal pain, he was told by officials in the jail that they could not help him and that he must purchase his own medication,” the letter reads. “His blood sugar levels are not being consistently checked. As a diabetic, he is at risk of ‘permanent organ damage’ (kidneys, heart, brain) and ‘[s]udden and preventable death’ if he does not receive proper treatment.”

Sarsour’s attorneys also allege that he has been unable to pray, due to being repeatedly interrupted by jail guards, and was denied the ability to obtain religious articles such as a Quran. When he asked for an adequate diet to stabilize his blood sugar levels, he was told to purchase barbecue pork rinds from the jail’s commissary, which would go against his dietary needs and religious beliefs.

Sarsour was taken into federal custody after being identified by the DHS as “a criminal illegal alien from Jordan suspected of funding terror organizations and lying on immigration forms,” according to an April statement from the agency. This claim is based on Sarsour’s prior conviction as a minor by an Israeli military court for “throwing a Molotov cocktail at the homes of Israeli armed forces and illegally attempting to possess weapons and ammunition” over 30 years ago. In the same April statement, the DHS repeatedly called Sarsour a “terrorist” who was previously denied an immigrant visa at the American Consulate in Jerusalem due to an Israeli conviction and lying on a green card application form about the conviction in 1998.

The DHS did not respond to Reason‘s requests for comment on the accusations against Sarsour. 

Sarsour’s attorneys and supporters have denounced the arrest and the department’s claims as an attack on his constitutional right to free speech. They say Sarsour’s detention is a politically motivated measure targeting an outspoken Palestinian activist, pointing out his clean criminal record since his arrival in the United States in 1993 and the government’s having known about his criminal conviction for over 30 years. Sarsour and his legal team have filed a writ of habeas corpus, arguing that his detention is unlawful and a clear violation of his First Amendment right to free speech, his Fifth Amendment rights to due process, and his rights under the Equal Protection Clause.

“The government has a policy to target Palestinian rights activists,” Samuel B. Cole, chief immigration litigation counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Illinois, tells Reason. “They have done it since the beginning of this administration. They have articulated the policy through their senior leadership, and there is no question that Mr. Sarsour is now a victim of this unlawful policy.”

Department of Justice lawyers continue to challenge concerns about Sarsour’s detention, particularly regarding his well-being, after an investigation they conducted with nine days of daily glucose monitoring gave him a clean bill of health. After visiting Sarsour at the Clay County Jail last week, Cole isn’t convinced of this analysis, describing Sarsour as “substantially thinner” than when he entered custody two months prior.

“We have a letter from his physician explaining that given his medical condition, he needs daily glucose monitoring,” Cole says, “and that the jail’s nine days of daily monitoring is insufficient, and this is his health at risk.”

Sarsour’s immigration status proceedings continue to unfold alongside his petition for release, with the next status hearing scheduled for June 24. 

Meanwhile, at Sarsour’s home in Milwaukee, the charges lobbied against a well-known voice have brought shockwaves to the Islamic community. On the Islamic Society of Milwaukee’s website, a community-organized LaunchGood fund has raised over $200,000 to cover Sarsour’s legal costs.

“[Brother] Salah is being targeted on the basis of his Palestinian and Muslim background, and his advocacy for Palestinian rights,” the LaunchGood description says. “We know this fight for Br. Salah is part of a larger trend of attacks on immigrants that whittle away at democratic norms and legal protections for everyone. That is why this fight is a fight for all of us.”