Rabbi testifies in support of Hamas-linked imam facing U.S. ban

9 May 2008

By The Associated Press

Qatanani claims he was not aware of the conviction and says he was subjected to physical and mental abuse while in detention. The trial is in its second day.

According to Israeli military authorities, Qatanani admitted being a member of the militant Hamas organization during interrogation in 1993 in Israel.

"Imam Mohammed Katanani was convicted based on his own admission on charges of belonging to an unauthorized association and providing services to an unauthorized association, for being a member of Hamas and acting on its behalf," the Israel Defense Forces said in a statement faxed to The Associated Press.

The U.S. State Department includes Hamas on its list of "designated foreign terrorist organizations." Anyone identified as a member or a supporter of an organization on the list can be refused entry to the U.S., according to Lucille Cirillo, spokeswoman for U.S. Customs and Border Patrol.

According to the army statement, an Israeli military court sentenced Qatanani to three months in prison and a 12-month suspended sentence, and also fined him.

Qatanani, who heads the Islamic Center of Passaic County in Paterson, faces possible deportation for not disclosing the conviction when he applied for citizenship in 1999. He is scheduled to appear before immigration Judge Alberto J. Riefkohl in Newark on May 8.

Qatanani has said he was not notified of the conviction until last year when he appealed a 2006 ruling denying his citizenship application. He also has denied being a member of Hamas.

Qatanani referred questions about the alleged confession to his attorney, Claudia Slovinsky, who said her client was the victim of physical abuse by Israeli authorities while in detention.

"It is beyond reputation that in the Israeli detention system in 1993, interrogations included abusive methods that most people would consider torture," she said.

According to Slovinsky, these included sleep deprivation, hoods, loud music and a technique in which detainees were kept shackled in uncomfortable positions for hours at a time.

Slovinsky said she has not seen the confession and that lawyers representing U.S. Immigrations and Customs Enforcement had not produced it by a court-ordered deadline last Friday.

"We don't do guilt by association here," Slovinsky said. "We have due process. If they have something on Mr. Qatanani, then they should bring it out."

ICE attorneys involved in the case declined to comment, and a spokesman for ICE did not comment other than to confirm Qatanani's trial date.

Qatanani is married and has six children, three of whom were born in the U.S. and three in Jordan. The three foreign-born children would be subject to deportation along with Qatanani and his wife, Sumaia.

After the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks -- and after it was revealed that several of the hijackers lived for some time in Paterson -- Qatanani gained notoriety for his efforts to reach out to other religious leaders and law enforcement authorities.

His mosque offered classes explaining Islam to those of other faiths, and he was praised by the FBI for providing Arabic speakers to help translate interviews with community members.

Political leaders, including Gov. Jon S. Corzine, have expressed support for Qatanani, and the imam's followers have raised about $135,000 for his defense in recent weeks. They are planning a rally in Newark on the day his trial begins, according to Aref Assaf, president of the Paterson-based American Arab Forum.