Tampa Bay Coalition for Justice and Peace
September 28, 2006
Mistreatment of Dr. Al-Arian Continues

Tampa-

Despite a mutual agreement reached in May of this year to conclude
the case against him, and the agreement of the Justice Department in
Tampa that his immediate deportation was in the best interest of the
government, the harassment of Dr. Sami Al-Arian by other Justice
Department offices has continued. Dr. Al-Arian was recently moved
from his permanent facility at the Medium Security wing of FCI
Coleman, north of Tampa, to numerous destinations around the country
until he reached his most recent destination, an overcrowded local
jail in rural Warsaw, Virginia.

Purpose Behind Move

According to a Sept. 26 report by the St. Petersburg Times, Dr. Al-
Arian’s move to Virginia is part of a government ploy to force him
to testify before a grand jury or face further imprisonment. His
former attorney William Moffitt stated emphatically that Dr. Al-
Arian is under no obligation to cooperate with the government. In
fact, the current actions by the government are a blatant violation
of the plea agreement, which specifically states that Dr. Al-Arian
is not to be pursued in any other cases.

“It is a clear violation of the plea agreement, which was supposed
to end Sami’s business with the United States, and prosecutors know
that,” said Moffitt. Linda Moreno, Moffitt’s co-counsel, said, “The
plea agreement doesn’t mention cooperation and that is intentional.
That Dr. Al-Arian would not cooperate was negotiated.”

The report states that Dr. Al-Arian could be held in contempt for
refusing to testify, extending his imprisonment indefinitely for up
to eighteen months. He is currently scheduled to leave the country
upon his release in April 2007. Any actions by the U.S. Attorney in
Virginia is only meant to further punish Dr. Al-Arian following his
court victory last December. The new legal issues will prolong the
suffering of the Al-Arian family, which has been faced with this
ordeal for over three and a half years.

The Tampa Bay Coalition for Justice and Peace calls upon all
Americans to condemn the continued harassment of Dr. Sami Al-Arian.
Please contact the Department of Justice and the office of the
United States Attorney to call for an end to the government’s
pursuit of Dr. Al-Arian and his continued mistreatment while in
federal custody. Prosecutors should be requested to honor the terms
of the plea agreement and cease any demands for cooperation.

During the move, Dr. Al-Arian was taken through Miami, Atlanta, New
Hampshire, New York, Oklahoma City, and Pennsylvania, before
ultimately reaching Virginia, all in the span of 72 hours. His arms
and legs were continuously shackled and kept in stress positions.
In spite of the fact that the Muslim holy month of Ramadan had
begun, Dr. Al-Arian was barely given any food or water, for over 18
hours at times. During the trip, he was also subjected to verbal
abuse by the U.S. Marshals responsible for transporting him, and had
his personal property confiscated.

The Tampa Bay Coalition for Justice and Peace condemns the
government’s treatment of Dr. Al-Arian during this move. We ask all
conscientious citizens to contact the U.S. Marshal’s and the U.S.
Attorney’s Office to protest their deplorable actions in moving Dr.
Al-Arian a thousand miles away from his family and subjecting him to
numerous abuses in the course of his move.

Since reaching the local jail in Warsaw, Virginia, Dr. Al-Arian has
continued to suffer at the hands of the authorities. The facility
has refused to accommodate his religious beliefs, depriving him of a
Koran and prayer rug. Officials have also refused to adhere to the
standard Ramadan eating schedule by denying him daily medication
after his fast. Dr. Al-Arian, who is diabetic, has been unable to
take his medication and his health has suffered as a result.

We urge all concerned supporters to contact:

1- Northern Neck Regional to object to this deplorable treatment and
clear lack of respect for the religious rights of Muslims.
Web site: http://www.nnrj.state.va.us/

2-In addition, please contact the local and national offices of the
Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and ask that they act
to protect Dr. Al-Arian’s rights.
Web site: www.cair-net.org

==
Al-Arian ordered to testify in case
www.sptimes.com/2006/09/26/Tampabay/Al_Arian_ordered_to_t.shtml

His ex-lawyer believes this is a ploy to further punish Al-Arian,
who will likely not testify and will be held in contempt.

MEG LAUGHLIN
Published September 26, 2006

Sami Al-Arian, who is seven months away from leaving prison, is
about to be subpoenaed to testify before a grand jury in another
terrorism-related case in Virginia, according to his former
attorney, Bill Moffitt.

Al-Arian, who was serving his sentence at a prison 60 miles north of
Tampa, has been moved to a county jail in Virginia, where he will be
summoned to testify before a grand jury about an Islamic think tank.

“It is a clear violation of the plea agreement, which was supposed
to end Sami’s business with the United States, and prosecutors know
that,” said Moffitt.

Steve Cole, spokesman for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Tampa,
said, “We can’t comment on any activity involving Sami Al-Arian.”
Linda Moreno, Moffitt’s co-counsel, said, “The plea agreement
doesn’t mention cooperation and that is intentional. That Dr. Al-
Arian would not cooperate was negotiated.”

What this means, said Moffitt, is that Al-Arian will probably take
the Fifth Amendment and refuse to testify, which will result in
contempt charges. This could extend his sentence by 18 months.
In May, Al-Arian was sentenced to 57 months in prison as part of a
plea agreement in which he admitted helping associates of the
terrorist group Palestinian Islamic Jihad with non-violent
activities. His release date was set for April 13, 2007, because he
had already spent several years in prison before and during the
trial.

The agreement came five months after Al-Arian received not guilty
verdicts in a jury trial, where he was charged with fundraising for
the violent activities of Palestinian Islamic Jihad in Israel and
the Occupied Territories. At the end of the six-month trial, a jury
acquitted him on eight counts and hung on nine.

Al-Arian’s plea agreement stated that the Department of Justice
could not “charge defendant with committing any other federal
offenses known … at the time of the execution of this agreement.”
At the plea agreement hearing in April, federal prosecutor Cherie
Krigsman specifically told the court that Al-Arian would not be
charged in the Eastern District of Virginia, “with committing any
other federal crimes known … at the time of this agreement.”
Krigsman mentioned the Eastern District of Virginia because of Al-
Arian connections to the International Institute of Islamic Thought,
a think tank in eastern Virginia. The IIIT is still being
investigated by the federal government.

“It’s an outrageous violation of the agreement,” said Moffitt. “Sami
is about finished and they’re piling on.”

Contact Meg Laughlin at mlaughlin@sptimes.com or 727 893-8068.