US Muslim organization seeks removal from UAE terror list

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates: The Council on American-Islamic Relations said Friday it has sought to be removed from a United Arab Emirates’ list that designates it as a terrorist organization, along with dozens of other groups.
The move comes after the Emirati Cabinet said that designated groups can pursue an appeals process to seek removal from the terrorism list.
Washington-based CAIR describes itself as America’s largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization.
The Emirates included CAIR on a list of 83 groups — including the Islamic State group, a number of Al-Qaeda-linked groups, as well as the Muslim Brotherhood and several Western-based Islamic organizations — it considers terrorist organizations. The list was made public Nov. 15 and also included another US-based group, the Muslim American Society.
Washington has said it was seeking more details from the UAE over its listing of the two American groups, which the US does not consider terrorist organizations.
CAIR civil rights litigation director Jenifer Wicks said Friday that details of a 2014 Emirati law the designation was based on were made available online this week. She said CAIR has not yet received details of the appeals process.
“Therefore, we asked that the submission sent this week be considered an appeal of the designation,” Wicks said in an e-mail.
She said CAIR was awaiting a response from the UAE Embassy in Washington or the Emirati Ministry of Justice, the first step in the appeals process. UAE has taken a tough stance against radical militants such as the IS group.