CAIR-NY Condemns President Trump’s Threat to Jail Terrorist Suspect In Gitmo
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
(NEW YORK, NY, 10/31/17) — The New York chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-NY), a leading Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today condemned President Trump’s unconstitutional threat to jail Sayfullo Saipov in the U.S. military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Saipov, a green card holder originally from Uzbekistan, was arrested in connection with yesterday’s deadly attack on Lower Manhattan.
SEE: Trump calls terror suspect ‘an animal’ and says ‘send him to Gitmo,’ wants to close diversity visa program
https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/post-politics/wp/2017/11/01/trump-says-he-may-send-new-york-attack-suspect-to-guantanamo-bay-and-is-terminating-diversity-visa-lottery-program/
Mr. Trump also said that the federal criminal and immigration systems were “a joke” and “a laughingstock,” going on to suggest that Saipov’s family “could be a threat.” The latest proposal comes as the Department of Defense continues to hold a U.S. Citizen who surrendered to allied forces in Syria in mid-September. Since then, his name, age and other personal details, have been withheld, even from U.S. lawyers seeking to represent him.
SEE: Case of suspected American ISIS fighter captured in Syria vexes U.S.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/case-of-suspected-american-isis-fighter-captured-in-syria-vexes-us/2017/10/29/349c18ce-bca7-11e7-8444-a0d4f04b89eb_story.html
“Rather than trying to bring our country together, this President is seeking to rip apart our constitution, attacking our fundamental rights,” said CAIR-NY Legal Director Albert Fox Cahn. “We’ve never sent suspects arrested on U.S. soil to Guantanamo Bay, not even in the darkest days after 9/11. Mr. Trump claims we are politically correct, but he is just factually wrong. The U.S. criminal justice system has successfully prosecuted numerous terrorists, while the Guantanamo Bay tribunal system has yet to convict a single suspect. Trump’s proposal shows that he doesn’t trump the NYPD, FBI and his own U.S. Attorney to handle this case. We will do everything we can to block this policy and any other attempts to exploit tragedy to attack our values and constitution.”
CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
La misión de CAIR es proteger las libertades civiles, capacitar a los musulmanes estadounidenses, y construir coaliciones que promuevan la justicia y la comprensión mutua.
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