Hagerstown Mosque discussed in “Muslim Mafia” book

I just opened my copy of the book we reported here a few days ago:  “Muslim Mafia, Inside the Secret Underworld That’s Conspiring to Islamize America”  by David Gaubatz and Paul Sperry and learned that the FBI had an interest in the Islamic Society of Western Maryland, located in Hagerstown, near where we live.

We are interested in this information because this mosque was involved with the Muslim refugees brought to Hagerstown a few years ago by the Virginia Council of Churches.

This is a portion of Chapter 6 which I am copying verbatim because there will be people in our county who should know this happened and our local paper, The Hagerstown Herald Mail is so politically correct they won’t publish any of this.

In September 2004, a pair of agents arranged an interview with the Muslim leader of a Maryland mosque that the FBI was investigating for suspicious activity.  The mosque leader alerted CAIR (Council on American Islamic Relations), and CAIR sent Shama Farooq, then the civil rights director for its Maryland chapter, to coach him through the interview.

Farooq wrote a detailed plan covering what Dr. Sayeed Ahmed, president of the Islamic Society of Western Maryland, should and shouldn’t say.  The predominantly Pakistani mosque is controlled by ISNA (Islamic Society of North America) and the Muslim Brotherhood.

“Oftentimes, these meetings are used to get information about other community members,” she warned in the plan she devised.  “It is important, first of all, not to talk about anyone else at all.”  (emphasis in the original).

Farooq also insisted Ahmed turn his cell phone off, and keep it out of the sight and reach of the agents during the interview.

Finally, she advised, “You are not required to tell the which Islamic centers you attend, how many times a day you pray, who you give charity to, and which organizations you are associated with.”

“Definitely,” she stressed, “do not address any questions relating to terrorism or violence and their place in Islam.”

That was step number one.  Then Farooq and Ahmed went to lunch the day of the scheduled interview with the FBI—September 1, 2004—to review her ground rules, the secret CAIR memo details.  They agreed she would sit in on the meeting.

Following lunch, they went back to his office and continued to “discuss strategies,” including introducing her to the agents only as “a sister in Islam,” while not identifying her position with CAIR up front. And she again specifically advised Ahmed not to answer any questions regarding information he may know about terrorism and violence.

The agents arrived at Ahmed’s office on time, and over the course of their interview, Farooq stepped in to stop Ahmed from answering several questions she felt could “incriminate” him, even though she was not his attorney.

As a result, Ahmed withheld critical information from the FBI.

[….]

The FBI agents, who were attached to the bureau’s Pittsburgh field office and led by agent Terry Grzadzielewski, left the meeting unaware they were denied information relevant to their investigation—-thanks to CAIR’s operative running interference on behalf of the subject of their inquiry that day.

Farooq reported details of the FBI meeting, including Ahmed’s omissions, to CAIR-Maryland/Virginia chapter executive director Rizwan Mowlana, who had assigned her to spy on the FBI.  A copy of the confidential memo—which is marked DO NOT RELEASE OUTSIDE CAIR—was obtained from CAIR’s internal files.

At the end of her report, Farooq recommended CAIR gather local Muslims who worship at Ahmed’s mosque in Hagerstown, Maryland, to formally train them in similar deception and obstruction tactics.

“Since the Hagerstown community seems to be a center of attention for several FBI agents,” she wrote, “I recommend CAIR conduct a know-your-rights lecture at the location with some recommendations [on] how to respond to FBI agents when approached by them.”

Of course left unanswered is why the “Hagerstown community” was of interest to the FBI in the first place!

What the heck! Tamils landing in Vancouver, BC

Update November 9th:  Ship linked to terrorist group, here.

Update October 24th:  One of the 76 has been identified as a member of the Tamil Tigers, here.

Update October 20th:  Excellent opinion piece about what this is going to cost Canada with more information about problems with Tamil immigrants in the past.

I have avoided getting into the whole Sri Lankan Tamil refugee issue, maybe just out of laziness—too weary perhaps to learn a whole new set of issues involving a new group of refugees that I wouldn’t be surprised end up in the US at some point.  It seems we can’t resist collecting more ethnic groups (see Rohingya are here).  Diversity is beautiful and all that!  Right?

But over the weekend a boatload of  illegal aliens, believed to be Tamils, have landed in Vancouver, BC so I feel compelled to no longer avoid the issue.   Before you read further, look at this map of Asia and note that Sri Lanka is on the east coast of India!  Why the heck, if they are just “asylum seekers,” did they need to come that far—there are a few places between Sri Lanka and Canada they could have landed!  And, these boats filled with all men are pretty fishy if you ask me.

From the Daily Mirror:

VANCOUVER, B.C. — Dozens of people, suspected to be Sri Lankans, who were aboard a mystery ship that was seized off Canada’s West Coast and towed into Victoria over the weekend were loaded onto buses on Sunday and ferried to the Vancouver-area for further screening.

The 76 males were found when the RCMP boarded a vessel displaying the name Ocean Lady on Friday near Port Renfrew and took control of the ship.

The Canada Border Services Agency and the RCMP have revealed little else about the group, their origin or how they ended up on a ship sailing towards Canada.

The seizure has prompted speculation the case may involve human smuggling and potential refugee claims, possibly by Tamils fleeing Sri Lanka, but border agency officials confirmed none of that.

“The individuals have been transported to . . . a corrections facility in Vancouver, where the CBSA will continue to examine their admissibility to Canada,” Rob Johnston of the Canada Border Services Agency said in a brief statement Sunday.

“We are acting quickly to meet the immediate personal and health needs of these individuals, and we are processing them in an efficient manner and in accordance with Canadian law.”

On Friday afternoon, a naval vessel approached the Ocean Lady and armed RCMP officers boarded it and took control.

A challenge to the Canadian immigration system indeed!

Perrin, a former adviser to the federal immigration minister, said it’s important that whatever happens, the fate of the group from the Ocean Lady be determined quickly rather than languish in Canada’s slow-moving immigration and refugee system.

“If our immigration and refugee system does not work to quickly offer support to legitimate refugees and deny that protection where the claims are bogus, then it’s not going to help anyone,” said Perrin.

“This case will undoubtedly test Canada’s refugee process yet again, and I expect it will be additional pressure to the federal government.”

Who are the Tamils?

Tamil Tigers are considered one of the most organized, brutal and ruthless terrorist groups in the world.    That is according to Time magazine here.   I am not saying these illegal immigrants are Tamil Tigers, it’s just that when you do a little searching around the internet that is one of the first pieces of information one discovers about the decades long effort to create a Tamil state in Sri Lanka. 

Tamils invented suicide belts and child suicide bombers—great huh!

The Tigers were defeated in May of this year by the Sri Lankan military, thus creating this exodus of Tamils.

Here is more information on the Tamils at wikipedia and a CBC article from May that sheds some light on why Canada might have been an attraction for these boatmen.

A Human Rights Watch report released in March 2006 said the Tamil Tigers were using threats and intimidation tactics to extort money from Sri Lankans living in Canada. Fundraisers, often working in pairs, knocked on the doors of Tamil families to solicit donations.

The fundraisers were quoted as saying they were “collecting for the final war against the Sri Lankan government.” The donation drive targeted Tamil families in Toronto, home to one of the largest Tamil populations outside Sri Lanka.

“Tamils unable to pay say they have been told by LTTE fundraisers to borrow the money, make a contribution on their credit card or even re-mortgage their home,” Human Rights Watch said in a news release.

In April of 2006, the Canadian government added the LTTE to its official list of terrorist organizations for its use of suicide bombers and child soldiers in the conflict. The designation made it a crime to fundraise for the group.

New ECBO funding list posted at Office of Refugee Resettlement

Just now I was working on a story and went back to the ORR link for Ethnic Community Based Organizations (ECBOs) funded by you and found there is a more up-to-date list posted, here.*  If you don’t know about ECBOs, we’ve got a whole cateory on them, here.

It’s my opinion that many of these “ethnic” groups do not foster assimilation and that they are basically politically active community organizing groups following the ACORN model.

I note the Nashville Somali Community Center (aka Center for Refugees and Immigrants of Tennessee) is getting $195,608 right now from ORR (Department of Health and Human Services) and this organization has a still unresolved issue of federal grant fraud, here.  And, on top of that the Director is now believed to be missing and possibly out of the country!

*Here is the whole list (I don’t know why there are some grant cases missing):

Grant # Ethnic Community Self-Help Program
Active Grantees City State Projected End Date Annual
Award
90RE0154 ISED Solutions Washington DC 9/29/2010 $121,764
90RE0155 Sauti Yetu Center for African Women, Inc. New York NY 9/29/2010 $107,590
90RE0157 US Together, Inc. Columbus OH 9/29/2010 $141,572
90RE0158 Women’s Initiative for Self Empowerment, Inc. St. Paul MN 9/29/2010 $168,370
90RE0159 Somali Bantu Association of San Antonio San Antonio TX 9/29/2010 $171,345
90RE0160 The Montagnard Human Rights Organization Raleigh NC 9/29/2010 $181,391
90RE0161 State of Maine Department of Health and Human Services Portland ME 9/29/2010 $168,059
90RE0162 Merced Lao Family Community, Inc. Merced CA 9/29/2010 $180,891

90RE0164 Merced Lao Family Community, Inc. Merced CA 9/29/2011 $183,831
90RE0165 Somali Bantu Community of Greater Houston Houston TX 9/29/2011 $125,695
90RE0166 Minnesota African Women’s Association, Inc. Minneapolis MN 9/29/2011 $123,758
90RE0167 Refugee Family Services, Inc Stone Mtn GA 9/29/2011 $154,430

90RE0169 Colorado African Organization Denver CO 9/29/2012 $197,308
90RE0170 Center for Refugees and Immigrants of Tennessee Nashville TN 9/29/2012 $195,608
90RE0171 Horn of Africa Community in North America San Diego CA 9/29/2012 $135,000
90RE0172 The Southern Sudanese American Association Anchorage AK 9/29/2012 $100,000
90RE0173 Asian Community & Cultural Center, Inc. Lincoln NE 9/29/2012 $125,000
90RE0174 Catholic Charities of Louisville, Inc Louisville KY 9/29/2012 $196,267
90RE0175 Pan-African Association Chicago IL 9/29/2012 $177,555
90RE0176 The International Rescue Committee (DC-MD) New York NY 9/29/2012 $199,962
90RE0177 IRCO-Immigrant & Refugee Community Organization Portland OR 9/29/2012 $200,000
90RE0178 Pan-African Community Association Milwaukee WI 9/29/2012 $166,824
90RE0179 Southern New Hampshire Services Manchester NH 9/29/2012 $118,420
90RE0180 Association of Africans Living in Vermont, Inc Burlington VT 9/29/2012 $165,531
90RE0181 Karen Community of Minnesota St Paul MN 9/29/2012 $169,000
90RE0182 Soamli Bantu Association of Tucson Arizona Tucson AZ 9/29/2012 $197,688
90RE0183 Boat People SOS Bayou LaBattre AL 9/29/2012 $100,000
90RE0184 Center for the Prevention of Hate Violence Portland ME 9/29/2012 $184,719
90RE0185 California Health Collaborative (Butte County) Fresno CA 9/29/2012 $141,682
90RE0186 Lao Family Community Development Inc Oakland CA 9/29/2012 $198,154
90RE0187 Sauti Yetu Center for African Women, Inc. New York NY 9/29/2012 $152,056
90RE0188 Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees, Inc Utica NY 9/29/2012 $79,226