5) U.S.

Deports Charity Leader in Visa Dispute

By RACHEL L. SWARNS
New York Times
WASHINGTON, July 15 — The founder of a Muslim charity accused of funneling money to Al Qaeda
has been deported, Justice Department officials said today. His lawyer said he was returned to Lebanon
late last night.
The man, Rabih Haddad, 41, was the chairman of the Global Relief Foundation, a charity based in
Bridgeview, III. The government froze the assets of the charity on Dec. 14, 2001, saying it was a financial
pipeline to terrorists.
Mr. Haddad, a Lebanese citizen who had lived in Ann Arbor, Mich., was arrested that day for overstaying
his tourist visa. He was detained for a year and a half, and his case created a furor because he was well-
known among Muslims and because the Justice Department initially barred the public from his
immigration hearings.
Representative John Conyers Jr., Democrat of Michigan, and several newspapers sued the government
and won a court order requiring the government to open the hearings. Mr. Conyers and others called for
Mr. Haddad's release, saying he was being unfairly targeted because he was a Muslim cleric.
"The fact is he has nothing to do with terrorism, nothing to do with Sept. 11," Mr. Conyers said today.
Jorge Martinez, a spokesman for the Justice Department, said Mr. Haddad had been deported, but
declined to comment further.
Mr. Haddad was never charged with a terrorism-related crime. But in November 2002, an immigration
judge ruled that he and his wife and three children should be deported, describing him as a threat to
national security. Mr. Haddad's lawyer, Ashraf Nubani, said he was deported to Lebanon late last night,
four days after an appellate court declined to review his deportation order.
Mr. Haddad, who had unsuccessfully applied for political asylum in the United States last year, was taken
into custody by the authorities in Lebanon when he arrived there today, Mr. Nubani said. His family still
lives in Ann Arbor, but also faces outstanding deportation orders.
"The government never established, other than with smoke screens and innuendo, that he was linked to
terrorism," Mr. Nubani said.
The government said Mr. Haddad had been seen in places affiliated with the Qaeda terrorist network. It
noted that federal agents confiscated a shotgun and stacks of cash from his apartment when he was
arrested.
Mr. Nubani said his client traveled, mostly to Pakistan, to take part in relief efforts. Mr. Haddad said the
shotgun was for hunting birds. As for the cash, Mr. Haddad said he received an income from donations
from mosques and Islamic centers and also received money from his wife's family.