CLEVELAND, 15 July 2006 — An Islamic religious leader convicted of concealing ties to terrorist groups remains jailed in Michigan seven months after he reached a deal with the US government to be deported.
The agreement called for Fawaz Damra’s deportation to Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Sudan, Egypt or the Palestinian territories. But so far, no one has been willing to take the former imam of the Islamic Center of Cleveland, officials said.
There is no definitive rule on how long Damra can be held in jail, according to his attorney, Robert Birach.
“If there was progress, he’d be gone by now,” said Birach, who declined comment on whether any other countries were being asked to take Damra. “We haven’t gotten a country yet to say yes.” Damra, 44, was convicted in June 2004 of concealing ties to three groups that the US government classifies as terrorist organizations when he applied for US citizenship in 1994.
That conviction was upheld in March 2005, clearing the way for the US to begin deportation proceedings.
Damra is having a difficult time in jail and misses his wife and three children, who still live in the Cleveland area, friend Haider Alawan said. “He’s a man without a country,” Alawan said.
