ICE detains Milwaukee mosque leader Sarsour

# Milwaukee Mosque Leader Remains Detained Amid Calls for Release

Salah Sarsour, president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee and a legal permanent resident for over three decades, has been held in federal immigration detention since late March. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested the 53-year-old Palestinian American, citing a conviction from Israeli military courts when he was a teenager in the occupied West Bank. The Department of Homeland Security claims Sarsour failed to disclose the conviction on his immigration applications, though his attorneys argue federal authorities have known about the case since his arrival in the U.S. in 1993.

Sarsour's legal team and supporters contend he is being targeted for his pro-Palestinian advocacy and criticism of Israel's actions in Gaza. They point out that the State Department identified him as a foreign policy threat related to combating antisemitism months before his arrest. His lawyers say the teenage conviction involved allegations of throwing rocks at Israeli officers—charges presented to him in Hebrew, which he did not understand—and that he was tortured during Israeli custody. Sarsour has no criminal record in the United States.

The detention has sparked widespread community opposition. Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson called it "an outrage" and an example of immigration overreach. The Milwaukee Common Council passed a resolution opposing his detention, and more than 9,000 people have signed a petition demanding his release. Jewish Voice for Peace and Bend the Arc: Jewish Action have also advocated for his freedom. Sarsour's wife and four children are U.S. citizens.

His attorneys have filed a habeas corpus petition seeking his release, with a bond hearing pending in federal court. Sarsour remains held at a detention facility in Indiana.