Minneapolis, MN – On April 15, Noor Elashi, daughter of wrongfully imprisoned Holy Land 5 defendant Ghassan Elashi, spoke to a packed room of over 50 people, mostly students from the University of Minnesota, about her father’s case. John Cline, Ghassan Elashi’s lawyer, also spoke of the injustice brought upon the five men who founded and built the largest Muslim charity in the U.S. George W. Bush shut down The Holy Land Foundation, falsely claiming its charity work for Palestine had ties to terrorism.

Elashi spoke passionately about the enduring spirit of her father despite being sentenced to 65 years. He is now in a Communications Management Unit prison in southern Illinois. “He’s told me that when he’s exonerated he will carry a sign saying ‘Free Palestine’ as he leaves prison,” Elashi said.

John Cline talked about the legal aspects of the case. Despite the government presenting many pieces of ‘evidence’ meant to scare the jury, the first trial of the Holy Land 5 resulted in a hung jury. All (but one) of the jurors thought the government had a faulty case. But the government’s Barry Jonas, and the other prosecutors, decided to try the men again. At the second trial, they used additional ‘evidence’ to guarantee a guilty verdict, including unverifiable evidence put forward by a witness testifying under anonymity and wild claims by so-called experts threatening a second 9-11-style attack.

A Federal Appeals court later found that it was a mistake to admit the new evidence but allowed the verdicts to stand.

Mick Kelly, of the Committee to Stop FBI Repression, ended the program by connecting the injustice brought against the Holy Land defendants to the attacks on those who speak out for justice, like himself and the other 22 anti-war and international solidarity activists who were subpoenaed and raided two and half years ago.

At this point, the legal remedies for the Holy Land 5 have been exhausted. But Elashi, Cline and Kelly made it clear that we should continue to speak out against the injustice of the Holy Land 5 case and speak against government repression like the ongoing case of the Anti-war 23.

This event was part of several events in Minneapolis, including one the previous night with local peace and justice activists. The event on April 15 was sponsored by Students for a Democratic Society at the University of Minnesota, Students for Justice in Palestine, and the Women's Student Activist Collective.

#MinneapolisMN #Palestine #PoliticalPrisoners #NoorElashi #IsraeliOccupation #AntiWar23 #GhassanElashi #HolyLandFive #FBIRepression #HolyLand5

Gainesville, FL – On March 26, 60 students and community members gathered in Little Hall to hear three nationally known figures speak out against political repression. A packed house greeted Noor Elashi, John Cline, and Mick Kelly for the final date of their tour. Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) and Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) organized the event to learn about the wave of U.S. government repression against Muslims, Arab-Americans and anti-war activists.

Noor Elashi spoke first and told the story of her father, Ghassan Elashi, unjustly imprisoned for sending charity to Palestine. Ghassan Elashi was the director of the Holy Land Foundation, the largest Muslim charity in America, which raised funds and provided food, medical care, shelter and education to countless people in need, both in Palestine and the U.S. Instead of being honored for humanitarianism, the Holy Land Five were charged under the Bush administration with ‘material support for terrorism.’

Noor went on to describe the inhumane conditions in which her father is held. Ghassan is imprisoned in a Communication Management Unit, which are specially designated punishment prisons for Muslims, Arab-Americans, and political activists. The conditions violate the prisoners’ human rights. “On one occasion they revoked our visitation rights for six months just because my father embraced my younger brother,” Noor explained to the shocked audience.

Attorney John Cline spoke about the legal case and explained that the first trial in Dallas ended in a hung jury. Jurors were not convinced of links between the health clinics and schools that received donations on the one hand, and the Palestinian Hamas movement that the U.S. government now opposes and criminalizes. The U.S. government was not satisfied. Prosecutor Barry Jonas won convictions in a second trial by using secret witnesses never identified to the defense, hearsay evidence and a shock video showing protesters in Palestine burning an American flag. This prejudiced the jurors.

Cline said, “There are cases where the criminal justice system fails and this is one of them. We all need to be severely outspoken about this injustice.”

Mick Kelly spoke about the FBI raid on his home and the 23 anti-war and Palestine solidarity activists who were subpoenaed to a grand jury in Chicago. Kelly recalled the day when he found out that the FBI had broken into his home and ransacked his belongings. The authorities claimed to be looking for evidence of ‘material support for terrorism.’

Kelly said, “Of course there wasn’t a shred of evidence for material support. Certainly not the kind of material support that the U.S. government gives to the occupiers of Palestine.”

When they finished, the speakers were given a huge round of applause. Those in attendance were saddened by the suffering of the Elashi family, outraged by the outcome of the case, and resolved to continue the fight back against government repression.

After the event Robbey Hayes, an organizer with Students for a Democratic Society said, “I thought the speeches were educational and motivating. We need to get organized and stop these attacks. Being anti-war is not a crime. Supporting Palestine is not a crime.”

#GainesvilleFL #InJusticeSystem #PalestineSolidarity #MickKelly #politicalRepression #NoorElashi #FBIRepression #JohnCline

Tampa, FL—Students, anti-war activists and community organizers gathered at the First United Church of Tampa on Sunday, March 24 to demand an end to U.S. government political repression. 35 people discussed ways to oppose political repression and gain freedom for the Holy Land Five.

Noor Elashi spoke about her father Ghassan Elashi, one of the Holy Land Five. Mr. Elashi co-founded The Holy Land Foundation and is currently serving a 65-year sentence in a Communications Management Unit (CMU) prison.

The Holy Land Foundation was a charity organization that provided food and supplies like clothing and books to children both in the U.S. and in Palestine. The Red Cross and other NGOs do very similar charity work. At the time, The Holy Land Foundation became the largest Muslim charity organization in the U.S. Shortly after 9/11 however, then-President Bush launched an FBI investigation and raided the homes of the charity leaders. They were investigated, tried twice and sentenced to long prison terms, becoming known as the Holy Land Five.

“Everyone who hears the facts of my father's case says he is an innocent man,” said Noor Elashi. She described visiting her father and taking photos outside the prison. The guards harassed her and confiscated her film, delaying and threatening to prevent the family’s visit with Ghassan Elashi. The guards forced Noor to delete all of her photographs; not even a photograph of her father was allowed to stay on her camera.

Noor describes how Ghassan Elashi was thrown in solitary confinement, “for hugging my little brother, who has Down syndrome, or for writing his name on a yoga mat.” Solitary confinement is a torturous way to punish those who are already serving time in special prisons for Muslims. Ghassan Elashi is now held at the CMU prison in Marion, Illinois. CMU prisons violate the human rights of prisoners and are much more restrictive than regular prisons.

John Cline, attorney for Ghassan Elashi, talked about the legal restrictions and outrageous rulings in the Holy Land Five case. The crowd learned the case is based on hearsay evidence – statements alleging the Holy Land Foundation was part of Hamas. In addition there was “shock video” unrelated to the case of Palestinians burning flags.

Finally Cline spoke of an Israeli military officer, never identified to the defense, who was allowed to testify. This is something new to U.S. trials and law. This is the first time the U.S. government structured a case in this manner. “I almost quit my practice after learning this detail,” said Cline. “It was hard for me to believe the justice system had failed and that there was no justice here.” Attorney John Cline ended his talk with urging those who were present to share this story with everyone they know. The Holy Land Five marked the beginning of a judicial form of political repression targeting American Muslims, but also anti-war and international solidarity activists.

The final speaker was Mick Kelly from the Committee to Stop FBI Repression, who described the FBI raid of his home, “I was at work at 7:30 in the morning when I got a call from my wife telling me the FBI was in my house,” said Kelly. He left work and came home to a crowd of FBI agents taking pictures, throwing newspapers and other items into dozens of boxes. “Over 70 agents all across the country did the very same thing to 22 other anti-war activists,” said Kelly.

The raids were a direct attack on anti-war activists. Mick Kelly and the other 22 antiwar activists are living day to day without knowing when or where they may be raided or indicted. Under U.S. Attorney Barry Jonas' watch, law enforcement agent Karen Sullivan met and tricked her way into anti-war activists' lives; all while monitoring and reporting back to the FBI.

“I have spoken out about supporting the people's right to self-determination, to liberation for Palestine and Colombia. No amount of political repression will make me stop saying that,” said Mick Kelly.

Jared Hamil, an organizer of the event, said, “What every person at the talk took home with them was the fact that anti-war sentiment is growing. The Holy Land Five represent everything that is wrong with our current justice system. Charity is not a crime. Feeding children is not a crime. Being anti-war is not a crime. We must unite and fight back against these attacks and demand a stop to government political repression.”

The event was organized by Mel Underbakke of the National Coalition to Protect Civil Freedoms and Jared Hamil with Committee to Stop FBI Repression-Tampa. Leaders from Students for a Democratic Society, Students for Justice in Palestine, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, and the Bradley Manning Support Network were present.

Tampa is one of three Florida cities – also including Tallahassee and Gainesville – where Noor Elashi, John Cline and Mick Kelly are touring. If you are unable to attend the upcoming talks, be sure to sign the Stop FBI Repression Pledge to Resist FBI, Grand Jury Repression here: http://www.stopfbi.net/get-involved/pledge-of-resistance and share their stories with everyone you know.

“I told my father that as long as I am alive, people will hear about my father's case. I will not stop until there is justice,” stated Noor Elashi.

#TampaFL #NoorElashi #AntiWar23 #GhassanElashi #HolyLand5 #PoliticalRepression

Minneapolis, MN – Billed as a report back from the first national conference of the Committee to Stop FBI Repression (CSFR), more than 50 people gathered for here Dec. 15 for an exciting event that featured veteran Chicano activist Carlos Montes, a moving message from Noor Elashi and an important speech by anti-war leader Jess Sundin.

Carlos Montes, who spoke to the meeting via Skype from Los Angeles, related how the FBI orchestrated a raid on his home. He talked about his work organizing the massive march on the 2008 Republican National Convention and his encounter with the undercover law enforcement agent “Karen Sullivan,” whose lies led to FBI raids and grand jury subpoenas for anti-war and international solidarity activists.

Montes, who faces up to 18 years in prison on false charges that claim he violated state firearm laws, said that he took heart from the solidarity that he has received from across the country.

Noor Elashi sent a message to the meeting about her father Ghassan Elashi, who is one of the Holy Land Five. The Holy Land Foundation was one of the largest Muslim charities in the U.S. After a series of outrageously unjust court actions, her father is serving a 65-year sentence.

Speech by Jess Sundin

Jess Sundin, a member of the Twin Cites based Anti-War Committee and whose home was raided by the FBI stated in part,

“It has been almost 15 months since the FBI ransacked our homes and the AWC office, searching for evidence to charge us with material support to FTOs [Foreign Terrorist Organizations]. The Committee to Stop FBI Repression was organized to build a defense around those whose homes were raided last September and those who refused to testify before a grand jury investigating us. Last May, we took up the defense of Carlos Montes, who is fighting six felony charges that were concocted by the same FBI agents who are after us.”

Speaking of the need to push back around other cases of government repression, Sundin stated:

“When this all began, I did not understand how long we would be waiting. In the Holy Land case, their office was raided in December 2001, the indictments came in June 2004, and the convictions came in November 2008, after a hung jury in a trial in 2007. Amina Ali and Hawo Hassan, the two Somali women who were just convicted here in Minnesota, had a long wait too. Their homes were raided in July 2009, and they weren’t indicted until August 2010. They were being spied on even after the raids on their homes, with wiretapped phone calls. It seems likely that this is true for us too.

“Ours is not just a Minnesota case – according to documents the FBI mistakenly left behind after raiding Mick’s apartment, six FBI offices in states across the country are involved. We know that prosecutors in both Illinois and Minnesota have a hand in this case. Our case is complicated, so I guess this means they’ll take all the time they can to piece together a case against us. They have called in some high-powered help: We learned at our conference that the prosecutor who went after the Holy Land directors has moved to Chicago and now he is working on our case.

“Supporting Noor’s father is the right thing to do – he was a good man doing good work. I believe the same for Amina Ali and Hawo Hassan. None of them should be facing prison sentences for sending aid to homelands ravaged by U.S. policies of war and militarism. At the same time, learning about their cases can help us in our own defense. I learned from the Somali women’s case that the government is willing to go the distance for a mere $8600. No doubt millions were spent to investigate and prosecute them. Before their case, I thought, gee, could the proceeds of my daughter’s lemonade stand for the Palestinian daycares really get us into trouble? Now I wonder.

“The government is not really targeting people for a few dollars sent abroad. They are targeting us for our ideas. It is not a crime to be a Palestinian or a Muslim, any more than it is a crime to be an anti-war activist or a socialist. But in all these cases, our ideas have brought us into conflict with the U.S. imperialist agenda. The government wants to prosecute us for our thoughts, thought crimes. None of this should make me, or Ghassan Elashi or Carlos Montes, or any of us a criminal.”

#MinneapolisMN #InJusticeSystem #ChicanoLatino #RacismInTheCriminalJusticeSystem #JessSundin #CarlosMontes #CommitteeToStopFBIRepression #MinnesotaCommitteeToStopFBIRepression #NoorElashi #HolyLandFoundation #HolyLandFive #PoliticalRepression