Published on 6/19/2026
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Last update: 03:59 (Mecca time)
Pursuant to a judicial order, the imam of the largest mosque in the US state of Wisconsin, Salah Sarsour, an American of Palestinian origin who had been detained by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement on March 30, was released.
The order came after a federal judge concluded that Salah Sarsour had filed a “factual” claim that he had been targeted for expressing his support for Palestinian rights.
US District Court Judge James Patrick Hanlon – who was appointed by President Donald Trump in his first term – wrote in a decision issued Thursday that lawyers for Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Department of Homeland Security did not provide sufficient evidence to refute Salah Sarsour’s allegations that he was subjected to retaliation for exercising his freedom of expression, nor did they explain why he was suddenly considered a threat at the present time after more than 3 decades of his legal residence in the United States.
But the judge made it clear that Salah must remain in the state of Wisconsin, where the case against him is still ongoing.
According to the Islamic Society of Milwaukee – which is the largest mosque in the state of Wisconsin – Salah, who is 53 years old and grew up in the occupied West Bank, is a permanent resident who has lived legally in the United States for more than 3 decades.
The mosque previously said that Salah “was targeted on the basis of his Palestinian and Islamic background, and his defense of Palestinian rights.”
Following his release, Salah said that he would never stop defending Palestine and humanity, wherever he is, and added, “I feel very comfortable being with my family.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), which was among those calling for his release, welcomed the ruling.
The Trump administration is waging a repressive campaign against pro-Palestinian voices by attempting to deport foreign demonstrators, threatening to freeze funding for universities that have witnessed protests, and ordering checks on immigrants’ online activity. However, these measures faced legal obstacles.
President Trump says that the voices supporting the Palestinians are anti-Semitic and support extremists, as he describes them. But their defenders – including Jewish groups – assert that the American government incorrectly confuses criticism of the genocidal war launched by Israel on Gaza with anti-Semitism, with defending the rights of Palestinians and supporting extremism.
