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| Muslim Americans barred from returning to US |
| 2010-04-03 |
| A growing number of Muslim and Arab Americans are finding it difficult to return to the United States after traveling abroad, advocacy groups say. Following an attempted Christmas day bombing on a Detroit-bound airplane, Muslim and ethnic Arab citizens of the US are bearing the brunt of the stringent wave of security measures installed at US airports. In one case, a US citizen was told without any explanation that he could "not fly with any airlines to the USA" when he presented his US passport at the airport in Bogota, Colombia for a flight to Miami last month. The California-born Raymond Earl Knaeble IV told The Washington Post that he was eventually sent to the US Embassy where an FBI agent questioned him about his recent conversion to Islam and a trip to Yemen where he had studied Arabic for three months. "He said, 'I can't give you back your passport,' " Knaeble explained, adding that he has yet to be provided with explanation despite the passing of almost three weeks. Khalilah Sabra, director of the immigrant justice program at the Falls Church-based Muslim American Society, said the extensive questioning and delays of Arabs and Muslims has seen a 50 percent increase since Christmas, with about 16 cases being reported each month. "Getting out [of the US] is okay. No one says anything, but when they try to come back they are not allowed in, or they are being questioned," she said. Security guidelines at US airports were further tightened after a failed attempt to allegedly blow up a US airliner over Detroit on Christmas Day. The end result of this is said to be rather "chilling" for travelers -- mostly Muslims and Arabs-- who are being singled out for airport questioning and screening. "People do whatever they can now not to cross borders if they're Muslim because they feel there's some potential for humiliation," said Ibrahim Hooper, a spokesman for the Council on American Islamic Relations. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #12 This is one hundred percent muslim propaganda...NOT HAPPENING!!! Hussein Soetoro Obama has given every indication that he is a friend of the jihadis if not a jihadi himself. What they are preparing to do is bar all conservatives to even get on an airplane. That's part of the marxists' MO, after all. They'll be called "Extremists", just like Al Qaeda...now watch for a bomb blowing up somewhere and be blamed on some imaginary "Militia" As Rahm said: "Never let a good...etc...etc |
| Posted by: Hotspur666 2010-04-03 22:10 |
| #11 All of the things that the Donks have been doing that are hypocritical, is really great! Since there hasn't been a squeak out of the usual suspects,once we kick their butt to the curb we can ramp it up. Any noise on their part and we can say: "What's that? I caaaaan't heeeeeear yoooooou!" Heh, heh, heh. We should have a free hand to do what is really needed, if we can rid ourselves of these Commie freaks. |
| Posted by: Secret Asian Man 2010-04-03 12:21 |
| #10 Can you imagine the outcry had this been done when George W. Bush was still in office? Oh well, at least the hypocrites are finally doing the right thing. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2010-04-03 12:13 |
| #9 Adding in the trip to Columbia on top of recent conversion to islam and training in Yemen and you likely have a money mule. |
| Posted by: Swanimote 2010-04-03 10:28 |
| #8 Boy, it's a good thing we got rid of Bush and Cheney, huh? {8^D |
| Posted by: Parabellum 2010-04-03 09:39 |
| #7 " Life's tough, but it's tougher when you're stupid." Converted to Islam. Check. Went to Yemen. Check. Salaam Aleikum. Check Now wants to come back to the Great Satan. Check. What Passport? Tell 'im to get on a Bus with BIG windshield wipers. |
| Posted by: Blackbart 2010-04-03 07:48 |
| #6 I completely agree with KBK's comments. There is no reason, NONE, for an American to visit Yemen as a private citizen right now. |
| Posted by: Mizzou Mafia 2010-04-03 07:09 |
| #5 Thank god, airlines are (finally) profiling. Here's hoping they're intelligent about it, and use the Israeli approach of employing trained screeners to ask a few questions of each passenger at Security and detect nervousness, lies, stories that make no sense etc. |
| Posted by: lex 2010-04-03 03:43 |
| #4 i hope it's true |
| Posted by: chris 2010-04-03 02:43 |
| #3 If you are a US citizen who recently converted to Islam, and were planning to study Arabic in Yemen, you should realize that you are a now person of interest. And that is as is should be. You may be totally innocent, but, as when you travel and expect to suddenly start charging your card heavily in a strange place, you are well advised to check with the appropriate people (Department of State, Mastercard) ahead of time to avoid embarrasment. |
| Posted by: KBK 2010-04-03 00:25 |
| #2 An Iranian news source. Probably not worth the electrons it takes to store it. |
| Posted by: gorb 2010-04-03 00:20 |
| #1 I would like to feel some sympathy for those that are innocent of any terrorists acts or any supporting of those that wish ill on the US and caught up in situations like this, but the silence from the Muslim community in response to the violence since 9/11, is,IMHO, deafening. Or to quote The Duke," Life's tough, but it's tougher when you're stupid." |
| Posted by: USN, Ret. 2010-04-03 00:17 |