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| Nuclear physicist/Muslim cleric fights to get back job, security clearance |
| 2008-02-03 |
| Dr. Moniem El-Ganayni is not the only imam to have served as a chaplain inside a state prison. But he may be the only one who is also a nuclear physicist working on classified U.S. military projects that require a security clearance. At least, he used to do classified work at the Bettis Laboratory, an advanced naval nuclear propulsion technology lab in West Mifflin operated by Bechtel Bettis Inc. for the U.S. Department of Energy. But in October, the two tracks of his life collided. His security clearance was suspended, barring him from the lab where he has worked for 18 years. Long a respected member of the Pittsburgh Muslim community and a founder of the Islamic Center of Pittsburgh in Oakland, the Egyptian-born Dr. El-Ganayni also was the imam at Pennsylvania State Correctional Institution-Forest in Marienville, Forest County, for five months in 2007. His contract was canceled in August after disputes over Ramadan observance and visiting policies. Twelve weeks after that, agents from the Energy Department, and later the Pittsburgh FBI, began questioning him about a book he distributed to inmates at the prison as well as speeches he made opposing FBI recruitment at local mosques and prayers he led there. His clearance was suspended on Oct. 24 pending further review. His pay has been cut in half pending the outcome. Without his clearance, and at age 57, Dr. El-Ganayni stands to lose much of what he has worked for since arriving in this country in 1980. His job and medical benefits are in jeopardy. A U.S. citizen since 1988, he won't be able to work in his field, and, if his clearance is not reinstated after an upcoming hearing, he says he'll probably return to Egypt with his American-born wife. Dr. El-Ganayni is the second local imam to run into a wall in recent months. Kadir Gunduz, 48, who has lived in Pittsburgh since 1988 and has raised three children here, was jailed in December on a visa technicality. He was released after a public outcry, but still faces deportation to his native Turkey. His appeal is pending. An untold number of Middle Eastern immigrants and Muslims across the country have been quietly ensnared by measures aimed at strengthening national security in a post-9/11 world, including some, like Dr. El-Ganayni, who have lost their security clearance. There is no way of knowing just how many, said Art Spitzer, director of the Washington, D.C., affiliate, of the American Civil Liberties Union. "We've heard about a number of cases involving security clearances, so there must be a lot more we haven't heard about," Mr. Spitzer said. Much more at link |
| Posted by:ryuge |
| #7 Dr. El-Ganayni stands to lose much of what he has worked for since arriving in this country in 1980. isn't that the point? |
| Posted by: Butch Ununs2831 2008-02-03 11:06 |
| #6 That's what makes the security establishment a joke. How does someone with this backround obtain a security clearance ? Mind boggling. Does anyone think he's not pipelining info to the muzz? The fact that these idjits haven't detonated a nuclear bomb in a major city in the west is very surprising. We've done everything but give them a working device. This sort of person on the inside makes it highly likely that we've given them plans. Totally unbelievable. |
| Posted by: Woozle Elmeter 2907 2008-02-03 09:37 |
| #5 Why was he there is the first place? |
| Posted by: Icerigger 2008-02-03 09:05 |
| #4 What's he got to worry about? Having his head chopped off when experiments fail? |
| Posted by: g(r)omgoru 2008-02-03 08:43 |
| #3 What's he got to worry about? There'll be lots of nuke physics jobs in saudi, egypt, iran and syria for years to come thanks to Bush and Rice shilly-shallying over the past several years... |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2008-02-03 08:40 |
| #2 This should have happened at around 2pm, September 11, 2001. I am being generous for giving management a late lunch. |
| Posted by: Excalibur 2008-02-03 08:27 |
| #1 Run 'em. |
| Posted by: Jomosing Bluetooth8431 2008-02-03 07:52 |