US judge rules Wisconsin mosque leader Salah Sarsour can be deported

Key Points:

• A U.S. immigration judge ruled that Salah Sarsour, president of Wisconsin’s largest mosque and a Palestinian-born U.S. resident for over 30 years, can be deported based on a memo from Secretary of State Marco Rubio citing his actions as undermining U.S. foreign policy against antisemitism.
• Sarsour’s lawyers criticized the ruling for giving "extreme deference" to the Secretary of State’s memo, arguing the judge could not examine the evidence behind the decision due to precedent, and they plan to appeal while also seeking protection under the Convention Against Torture.
• Sarsour was detained by ICE in March 2023, and his case involves decades-old Israeli convictions which he denies, claiming confessions were coerced under torture; a federal judge previously ordered his release from ICE custody amid concerns of retaliation for his pro-Palestinian activism.
• The ruling raises broader concerns about the rights of immigrants to engage in political speech without fear of government targeting, with Sarsour stating deportation to the occupied West Bank would be life-threatening due to risk of torture and lack of safe residency options.