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<font size=3><b>Friends, this is an amazing case which shows the extent
to which the US and Israeli governments function together in promoting
torture and the prosecution of a Palestinian (US citizen) to further a
"terrorist" prosecution. The attached article is a must read to
understand the depths to which torture is being used by both governments,
Unfortunately, this case is neither an anomaly in the US or Israel. The
Palestinian man, Muhammad Salah, was tortured by the Israelis in 1993 and
now 13 years later the U.S. wants to use his alleged statements in a Rico
prosecution accusing him of supporting Hamas- "a racketeering
enterprise."<br>
<br>
Much of the suppression hearing has taken place in a closed courtroom,
barring the press and public and much of it has been secret even to the
lawyers and the defendant with Israeli interrogators, lawyers and
U.S. prosecutors meeting secretly with the judge.<br><br>
<div align="center">TORTURE, SECRET HEARINGS AND CLASSIFIED EVIDENCE: THE
CASE OF MUHAMMAD SALAH<br>
</div>
<i>[This article is based on the research and suppression hearing
preparation work of the Salah trial team and National Lawyers Guild
members Michael Deutsch, Erica Thompson, Robert Bloom and Ben Elson, and
was written by PMCRLR Editorial Board member Flint Taylor.]</i></b>
<br><br>
<b>Some recent background is below.<br><br>
PRESS STATEMENT ON MUHAMMAD SALAH’S CASE <br>
March 3, 2006 <br><br>
</b><i>Lack of due process in Muhammad Salah case undermines American
Constitutional rights and civil liberties for all <br><br>
</i><b>(Chicago, IL 3/3/2006)</b> - As a civil rights organization, our
aspiration is to see every American granted his or her full rights under
any and all circumstances. Mr. Muhammad Salah, an American citizen, is
entitled to the right to a fair trial. This entails the right to public
hearings. This right hangs in the balance, while several of his other
rights have already been violated. <br><br>
Closed hearings increase the potential of injustice administered in the
courtroom and because the circumstances surrounding the charges against
Mr. Salah indicate definite constitutional violations, it is imperative
he be granted a fair and open hearing. <br><br>
Mr. Salah’s charge in the United States for involvement in terrorist
activity should not be brought to trial in American courts if based
primarily on the confession taken in Israel in 1993 under torture in a
language he does not understand - Hebrew. <br><br>
The 4th and 14th amendment of the United States constitution require that
the consent acquired in the ascertainment of truth, or a confession, may
not be accomplished through any form of coercion. The US Supreme Court
has established that the slightest implication of coercion taints the
“voluntariness” aspect of the defendant’s statement and is therefore
inadmissible as evidence against the accused. Dickerson v. United States
530 U.S. 428; <br><br>
Lastly, The freezing of Mr. Salah’s bank accounts violate his 14th
amendment right because he did not have the opportunity to defend, the
property was not forfeitable property. The freezing of his bank accounts
puts an undue burden on his wife and children. By freezing Mr. Salah’s
accounts, the 14th amendment rights to life and liberty and denied to Mr.
Salah’s entire family. <br><br>
The American people’s interest is not to see a specific outcome for this
trial, rather it is to see that it is a fair trial, and to be assured
that every citizen’s due process takes its full course in our courts of
law. <br><br>
<b>CONTACT: Ahmed Rehab, Director of Communications; (847) 971-3963
<a href="mailto:communications@cairchicago.org">
communications@cairchicago.org</a><br><br>
<br>
</b>
<a href="http://www.chicagomediaaction.org/news.php?id=413" eudora="autourl">
http://www.chicagomediaaction.org/news.php?id=413<br><br>
</a>An American citizen of Palestinian descent, Mr. Muhammad Salah
traveled from his home in Bridgeview, IL to Israel in 1993 to provide
monetary assistance to Palestinian families. At the Gaza border-crossing,
over twenty Israeli soldiers arrested and detained him. The Israeli
Secret Service then systematically tortured him during an 80-day
interrogation and forced Mr. Salah to sign a confession in Hebrew, a
language that Mr. Salah does not understand. The Israeli Military Court
sentenced him to five years in prison. After serving his sentence, he
returned home to his family in the U.S. in 1997. <br><br>
When he returned, the U.S. government had launched an investigation and
had listed him on a list of Specially Designated Terrorists. Mr. Salah is
the only U.S. Citizen to be placed on that list. As a result of this
designation, all of the Salah family assets were frozen, and he was
prohibited from receiving any goods or services from any U.S citizen not
licensed to do so. Mr. Salah had to obtain permission from the Department
of Treasury to get a job, to retain an attorney, to open a bank account,
and to receive medical ca! re. As a result of these restrictions, his
entire family suffered consequences and now lives in fear of eviction.
Mr. Salah suffered these restrictions on his rights without being
notified as to the reasons and without an opportunity to challenge his
placement on the list. <br><br>
Not until 2001 did the United States federal government re-launch a grand
jury investigation into Mr. Salah's case. Then, in 2004, the U.S. charged
Mr. Salah with aiding a terrorist organization based on the Hebrew
confession, obtained through torture in 1993. He is scheduled to stand
trial in the fall of 2006 in the United States District Court of the
Northern District of Illinois. Mr. Salah~Rs lawyers moved to suppress the
1993 Hebrew confession as evidence. Starting on March 3, 2006, the court
will hold hearings on whether to admit this confession as evidence. The
court has closed to the public the portion of the hearing in which Mr.
Salah's Israeli interrogators will testify as to their methods of
interrogation. The closing of the hearing further violates Mr. Salah's
Sixth Amendment Constitutional rights and the public's First Amendment
right to a full public trial. <br><br>
As residents of Bridgeview, Mr. Salah and his wife have long been active
members in their community, where they have raised their five children.
Two of whom are attending college on full scholarships. The Coalition to
Protect People's Rights has united in order to raise public awareness
about the United States government's violation of Mr. Muhammad Salah~Rs
due process rights. The Coalition, which is comprised of civil rights
groups, human rights groups, community-based organizations, and concerned
individuals, advocates for the safeguarding of people's rights protected
by the United States Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights. Please join our Coalition in this effort to protect human rights
and Mr. Muhammad Salah's right to a fair trial. <br><br>
Thank you,<br><br>
For more information contact
<a href="http://www.chicagomediaaction.org/cpprchicago@yahoo.com">
cpprchicago@yahoo.com</a><br><br>
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