Help Dr. Al-Arian

Request From Pastor Warren Clark: I am pastor of First United Church (UCC) of Tampa, and a leader of the Tampa Bay Friends of Human Rights. I have been visiting with Sami Al Arian in jail almost every week since March. Dr. Al Arian will remain in jail... and in legal limbo, unless there is a broad call for his release. I am asking you to write a letter asking for fair procedures in the resolution of the case against Dr. Al Arian. He should be released on bail while awaiting next moves by the government. I have seen first hand the heavy emotional toll on his family. They have borne this burden amazingly well, but the humane thing to do is to at least let him be with his family. I would also urge whatever appropriate organization or group that you are a part of to make a public statement, as Amnesty has done. This Friday, Jan. 6, at 9:30AM at the Federal Courthouse on north Florida Ave., the judge will hold a hearing of determination about next legal steps in this case. Leaders from national Muslim organizations will be here to call for a fair and just resolution of the case. If you could join with them, that would be a powerful statement. I know they would be very happy to have you join them. If you are unable to come this Friday ( I know how short a notice this is!) but would make a public statement, I would be happy to read it for you on Friday, as I have been asked to speak. Or I could include your name or organization in a reading of those calling for just procedures in the resolution of the case. Here is where to write letters or send statements: E-MAIL, CALL and WRITE Attorney General, Alberto Gonzales E-MAIL: AskDOJ@usdoj.gov PHONE: 202-514-2001 and 202-353-1555 MAIL: U.S. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20530-0001 The other decision maker is Paul Perez, Chief Prosecutor. Please ask him to drop all charges and free Dr. Al-Arian. Any e-mail can be sent to steve.cole@usdoj.gov Ask that it be forwarded to Paul Perez Please CC to me, Pastor Warren Clark, at FLHIST@aol.com Thanks. AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL Public Statement AI Index: AMR 51/204/2005 (Public) News Service No: 345 20 December 2005 USA: Amnesty International seeks fair procedures in resolution of case against Dr Sami Al-Arian Amnesty International notes the recent acquittal by a jury of the most serious of terrorism-related charges against former Florida professor Sami Al-Arian, and urges fair procedures in the resolution of outstanding charges against him, on which the jury deadlocked. Dr Sami Al-Arian was arrested in February 2003 charged with conspiring to aid Palestinian Islamic Jihad to maim and kill Israelis, charges he has always denied. For much of his pre-trial detention, Al-Arian was held in near solitary confinement in a maximum security prison in harsh conditions. Amnesty International raised concern with the US government that the conditions under which he was held as a pre-trial detainee were unnecessarily punitive. These included heavy shackling during visits with his attorneys, denial of adequate exercise, limits on writing materials and visits with his family and other deprivations. Amnesty International urges the US authorities to ensure that Sami Al-Arian is afforded humane treatment and due process in any further proceedings taken against him. Amnesty International notes that the jury had found insufficient evidence after a protracted trial to convict on the most serious charges, including conspiracy to maim or murder, finding no link between Al-Arian’s fundraising activities in support of Palestinians and knowledge of or intent to commit acts of violence. Noting the sweeping nature of some of the remaining charges, the organization urges the government to seriously consider whether it is in the interests of justice to retry him on those charges. The government has indicated that it may try to deport Sami Al-Arian instead of retrying him. Should this be the case, Amnesty International urges that Dr Al-Arian be afforded a full and fair opportunity to contest any evidence used in deportation proceedings. As Dr Al-Arian is a stateless Palestinian, it is essential that the United States ensures his safety and that an appropriate host country can be found. Given that Dr Al-Arian has not been convicted of any crime after nearly three years in prison – often in harshly punitive conditions – the government should not now leave him in legal limbo during any protracted consideration of his case. Background Information Dr Sami Al-Arian is former professor at University of South Florida, Tampa, and was accused of using an academic think-tank as a fundraising front and cover for Palestine Islamic Jihad, which has been involved in suicide bombings in Israel. He and three co-defendants were charged with conspiring to bring about such attacks through actively supporting PIJ. The charges included operating a criminal enterprise, conspiracy to murder and maim people outside the United States and conspiracy to provide material support to a terrorist organization. The prosecution’s case was based on hundreds of pages of transcripts of wiretapped phone calls and faxes dating from the mid 1990s. Al-Arian and co-defendants claimed the money raised went to Palestinian charitable causes and not for violence. Al-Arian was acquitted of 8 of the 17 counts against him, the jury deadlocking on others. Two co-defendants, former Florida graduate student Sameeh Taha Hammoudeh and Chicago resident Ghassam Zayed Ballut were acquitted of all charges. The jury acquitted a third man, Hatim Naji Fariz, on 25 counts and failed to reach a verdict on eight others. The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs, PO Box 53062, Washington DC 20009. Phone: (202) 939-6050, Fax: (202) 265-4574, Toll Free: (800) 368-5788, www.wrmea.com Published by the American Educational Trust, a non-profit foundation incorporated in Washington, DC to provide the American public with balanced and accurate information concerning U.S. relations with Middle Eastern states. Material from the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs may be printed with out charge with attribution to the Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. Subscribe or Unsubscribe Info (http://www.mediausa.net/wrmea/subscribe.html)