CAIR Calls for Explanation
of German Muslim’s Detention
Anaheim,
CA: The Southern California Chapter of the Council on American-Islamic
Relations (CAIR-LA) December 30 asked for an explanation
as to why a German Muslim was barred from entering the United
States and is now being detained in Nevada .According to
his family, 62-year-old Majed Shehadeh is being held after
arriving at Las Vegas ' McCarran International Airport on
Thursday. Family members say Shehadeh was interrogated for
a total of more than 12 hours by officials with Customs
and Border Protection (CBP) and the FBI. He was also allegedly
placed in a cold cell with some 25 other people and a single
toilet, and prevented from taking prescribed heart medication
for 20 hours.
Shehadeh, whose wife and three children are US citizens,
had planned to visit his daughter in Bakersfield , Calif.
, to celebrate her passing of the California Bar and her
wedding anniversary. The family has reportedly been barred
from seeing Shehadeh, and was only able to communicate with
him late Friday morning. CBP officials report that he will
be sent out of the country on Sunday.
"We call on the Department of Homeland Security and
the FBI to explain why Mr. Shehadeh was barred from entering
the United States and ask that his treatment in detention
be reviewed to determine if proper procedures are being
followed," said CAIR-LA Executive Director Hussam Ayloush
. "These types of incidents have the potential to further
damage our nation's image in Europe and the Muslim world."
Ayloush said German citizens are routinely granted visa
wavers for entry into the United States . Shehadeh's wife
says she and her husband have traveled to the United States
almost once a year for the past 30 years.
SEE: Visa Waiver Program (VWP)
The US Department of Homeland Security recently apologized
to a Muslim traveler strip-searched at a Florida jail after
being detained in April.
SEE: Muslim Gets Apology for April Strip Search (St. Petersburg
Times)
CAIR, America 's largest Islamic civil liberties group,
has 32 offices and chapters nationwide and in Canada . Its
mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage
dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims,
and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
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