Federal judge releases Wisconsin mosque leader from ICE

A federal judge ordered the release of a Wisconsin mosque leader from immigration detention on Thursday, finding he had raised substantial claims that his detention was retaliation for his pro-Palestinian advocacy. Salah Sarsour, the 53-year-old president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee, was released hours after the ruling and reunited with his family.

U.S. District Judge James Patrick Hanlon ruled that Sarsour, a Palestinian-born legal permanent resident, presented a credible argument that his First Amendment rights were violated. The judge noted that government attorneys failed to provide sufficient evidence to counter the retaliation claim or explain why Sarsour was suddenly considered a threat after living lawfully in the United States for over three decades. Hanlon, who was appointed in 2018, wrote that the "mere invocation of foreign relations concerns does not automatically trump First Amendment rights."

Sarsour was taken into custody by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents on March 30. The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, has stated he represents a foreign policy threat, citing decades-old convictions from an Israeli military court....