Prominent Ohio Islamic leader indicted

CLEVELAND - A prominent Islamic clergyman was arrested Tuesday on an indictment alleging he concealed links to groups that committed terrorist attacks against Jews when he applied for U.S. citizenship a decade ago, officials said.

Imam Fawaz Mohammed Damrah, who leads the Islamic Center of Cleveland, Ohio's largest mosque, is accused of withholding information on his membership or affiliation with several groups, including the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, U.S. Attorney Gregory White said.

White said the indictment did not allege that Damrah, a Palestinian, committed any terrorist activities. The indictment did not specify what type of support Damrah may have provided to any of the groups.

Damrah, 41, who also uses the name Fawaz Damra, was charged with unlawfully obtaining U.S. citizenship by providing false or fraudulent information, White said. He gained citizenship in 1994.

If convicted, he could face loss of his citizenship, up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine.

Palestinian Islamic Jihad has been identified by the U.S. government as a terrorist organization, White said.

Other groups for which Damrah is accused of concealing an affiliation or membership were Afghan Refugees Services Inc., also known as Al-Kifah Refugee Center, and the Islamic Committee for Palestine, also known as Islamic Concern Project.

Damrah has been a permanent resident in the United States since 1988, White said.

Damrah's past has been public knowledge for several years. White would not say why the indictment has been filed now.

"We are strictly dealing with issues, activities and incidents prior to his becoming a naturalized citizen and what he was required to disclose" to gain citizenship, White said.

Damrah represented the Islamic community at interfaith gatherings in Cleveland after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Then, local TV stations broadcast a videotape from a Chicago gathering 10 years earlier showing him making anti-Jewish comments in a speech. He called for rifles to be directed at Jewish people, and referring to them as "the sons of monkeys and pigs."

He apologized for the remarks, saying they were made before he had any interaction with Jews and Christians. But a local community college replaced him in late 2001 as the teacher of a course on Islam.

http://www.fox8cleveland.com/dynamic/story.asp?category=140#3464

Islamic Leader Indicted on Charge of Citizenship

Watch the I-Team exclusive that lead to today's arrest Tonight on Fox 8 News at 5 and 6.

(1/13/04) — A prominent Islamic clergyman has been indicted on a charge of concealing alleged assistance to groups that committed terrorist attacks against Jews when he applied for U.S. citizenship, the government announced Tuesday. Imam Fawaz Mohammed Damrah is accused of concealing from his citizenship application his membership or affiliation with several groups, including the Palestinian Islamic Jihad, U.S. Attorney Gregory White said. The indictment did not specify what type of support Damrah is accused of providing.

Damrah, 41, of suburban Strongsville, was charged with unlawfully obtaining U.S. citizenship in 1994 by providing false or fraudulent information on his citizenship application, White said. Damrah, who also uses the name Fawaz Damra, was arrested at his home about 8:30 a.m. Tuesday by members of the FBI joint terrorism task force. He was held to await an arraignment Tuesday afternoon in U.S. District Court before Judge James S. Gwin.

The other groups for which Damrah is accused of concealing an affiliation or membership were Afghan Refugees Services Inc., a division of the Kafah Refugee Center and also known as Al-Kifah Refugee Center and Alkifah Refugee Center Inc., and the Islamic Committee for Palestine, also known as Islamic Concern Project.

If convicted, Damrah cold face up to five years in prison and a $5,000 fine. In addition, if convicted Damrah could have his citizenship revoked. Palestinian Islamic Jihad has been identified by the U.S. government as a terrorist organization, White said. He said the indictment focused on false statements made in order for Damra to get his citizenship but did not allege any terrorist activities.

"We are strictly dealing with issues, activities and incidents prior to his becoming a naturalized citizen and what he was required to disclose prior to becoming a naturalized citizen in April 1994," White said. Damra, who was born in Palestine, has been a permanent resident in the United States since 1988, White said. Damra's past has been public knowledge for several years. White would not say why the indictment has been filed now.

"It's not something I can comment on. We had opened our case, investigated the matter and returned an indictment, so the record speaks for itself," White said.

Damrah, who leads Ohio's largest mosque, apologized in 2001 when a 10 year-old videotape surfaced showing him making anti-Semitic comments in a speech. Lay leaders of the Islamic Center of Cleveland accepted the apology and said he was forgiven. The videotape was released by immigration agents in 2002 in a deportation case in Florida involving another man. Damrah, apparently videotaped in Chicago in 1991, was shown calling for rifles to be directed at Jewish people, and referring to them as animals.

Damrah represented the Islamic community at interfaith gatherings in Cleveland after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in New York and Washington. His mosque was rammed by a car six days after the attacks. The suspect was drunk and upset about the terrorist attacks, police said.

No sonny, I'm not sitting on my brain. I despise the Michigan Militia more than you do. I believe in what the US Constitution says about the militia. Although I'm probably on the high side of the age limits, I can still hit the black spot at 100 or so yards pretty consistently, and I'm not shooting a pea shooter. I'd be proud to be part of the US Constitution inspired militia anytime. In my experience, You seem to have this need to unjustly tie other people to the Michigan Militia and put a religious spin on things that you post. I can't seem to get the 9/11 images of those people having to make the horrific decision to jump or burn to death, nor have I forgotten who inspired those thoughts. I haven't forgotten the USS Cole or the other vicious islamic inspired attacks either, and I don't care what their rationale is, but it sure wasn't any Christian and I don't believe the Michigan Militia collectively is smart enough to figure those types of attacks out.

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