Newark, NJ – New Jersey Muslim leader facing deportation asked that his children be removed from the courtroom today before he broke into tears while describing graphic torture he said he was subjected to in Israeli detention.
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The issue of torture is at the heart of the deportation proceedings against Mohammad Qatanani, a Palestinian who has been the mosque leader of the Islamic Center of Passaic County in Paterson since 1996.
The United States government has rejected his bid for permanent U.S. residency, saying Qatanani failed to disclose a 1993 arrest and conviction in Israel for being a member of Hamas on his green card application.
Qatanani denies the charges, saying he was detained, not arrested, by the Israelis along with many Palestinians at the time. Qatanani claims he was not aware of the conviction and claims he was subjected to physical and mental abuse while in detention.
As he recounted his time in Israeli detention — describing being tied to a small chair with his hands bound, kept in a freezing cell, and subjected to violence and threats — several of his supporters in the packed courtroom began quietly weeping.
“Judge, you can not imagine,” Qatanani said, his voice breaking. “They say ‘We will kill your family.’ They say: ‘You know what your family is doing now? We will go to them, we will burn them.'”
Qatanani paused to compose himself before telling Immigration Judge Alberto J. Riefkohl, “At that time, you feel that death is better than life.”
Earlier in the day, Qatanani described growing up poor in a Palestinian refugee camp. He said that since age 6, he has wanted to be a mosque leader — following in the footsteps of his father.
The man’s a filthy liar. Throw the shvantz out together with his shventzlach! Why was this man let into the country in the first place?
these guys they will kill 1000 children to kill one Jew, and he is crying for what – The guy is a Hamasnick get rid of him now
he deserved worse then that he should say thank you that he only got that little
i worked with israeli security and saw much worse thats how they get all terrorists and it works
What is really sad is that there is a liberal rabbi in NJ who is his No.1 supporter.
The CIA recently released documents which show that Yitzcack Shamir originally provided the funding for Hamas. The Mossad believed that the rise of a fundamental religious movement would curtail the power of a Palestinian nationalist movement such as the PLO.
How Sad. Just Kidding
I can’t understand why when the so called bad israelis return a prisoner to the arabs he is allways alive and when the nice arabs return a israeli prisoner he is allways in a coffin?
This putz got free air conditioning and he’s saying it was TORTURE? What else? He didn’t get the remote for the TV?
Better to keep this shtickel chazir in the USA than to bring him any closer to Arzteinu HaKidosha.
What make difference if he was charged or not? The fact he is part of Hamas who claimes to kill every jew R’L, is more than enough to reject his stay in U.S.
Amazing how many people post comments with zero knowledge of the situation.
And amazing is the anti-muslim attitude.
Yidden, not everyone hates us.
Yidden, not every muslim is bad.
Casey Jones,
BTW, HALACHA Eisav Sonei Es Yaakov.
Why are you trying to defend Hamas? They themselves say, “We will kill the Jews!”
As a matter of fact they claim that on their euphoric day (ie massiah) the tree will call out, “There is a Jew hinding behind me!” Their ultimate goal is to kill each and every Jew.
WAKE UP!!!
“Casey Jones:”
The shmuck LIED on his green card app. He is a Hamas symp. AROIS MIT EM. How sympathetic were you to the illegals who were arrested at Agri?
I am not defending Hamas.
>>The shmuck LIED on his green card app
If you view an illegal arrest from an illegal occupation a lie, then ok.
But then again, many yidden have tweeked their green card apps.
>>>HALACHA Eisav Sonei Es Yaakov.
You can’t just throw around a quote like that and expect every Muslim to hate us.
>>Why are you trying to defend Hamas? They themselves say, “We will kill the Jews!”
Not every Arab supports Hamas, in fact, most don’t.
Just like a minority of yidden support Kach.
All I am saying is that peace can be made.
Please give me a practical pesak with a current posek on what Eisav Sonei Es Yaakov means.
I think many of the blogs are coming out of emotions and not knowledge. I urgue you guys to read the case in its entirety and to be open minded. The Imam of ICPC is has real friends of rabbi’s, priests, christian supports, jewish supporters and other goverment officials. Let us be realistic and look the issue as whole. If anyone deserves to stay in the US, it is Imam Qatanani
If you want to talk about Hamas (i am not supporter of Hammas), you have to talk about the illegal occupation of palestine. who is the aggressor now? ha?
If you want to talk about killing, the isreali have killed over 210 innocents people in gaza alone this year many are children and women. Hamas killed 5 this year.
should i continue…?
wake up from your dream
Do you really think if was a member of hamas that isreal would let him go??? hello can you hear me?