If imam is deported, members' faith in system could suffer

PATERSON -- As Imam Mohammad Qatanani's deportation trial begins today, the U.S. Immigration Court in Newark will weigh whether the spiritual leader, his wife and three of his six children can remain in Paterson, their home of 12 years.

But the case will also shape the future of the Islamic Center of Passaic County, one of the largest mosques in North Jersey. Qatanani has transformed the mosque from a gathering place of about 500 Palestinians into a multi-ethnic institution where thousands of believers are encouraged to broaden ties with American society, members say.

So far, the threat has caused members to come together and defend the cleric. If he is deported, however, it could jeopardize the willingness of members to trust law enforcement and participate in larger American life, as has happened in other mosques with leaders facing deportation.

"This generates a mentality that people are under siege," said Ihsan Bagby, a professor of Arab and Islamic studies at the University of Kentucky.

Qatanani, the spiritual leader of the mosque since 1996, faces deportation for not disclosing a conviction in an Israeli court on his application for permanent U.S. residency. In a statement issued last month, Israeli police said the Palestinian man confessed to assisting Hamas and was sentenced to a three-month imprisonment.

Qatanani, 44, said he never confessed to assisting Hamas, which the U.S. State Department considers a terrorist group.

Today, U.S. Immigration Court Judge Alberto J. Riefkohl will begin to hear the three-day case. It will probably take months for Riefkohl to write a decision and likely the case will go to an appeals court, immigration lawyers say. Hundreds of supporters are expected to rally outside the court.

The case has attracted national attention because of Qatanani's efforts to foster relationships with law enforcement, American officials and leaders of other religious groups. Some conservative blogs and online magazines have used the case to allege the mosque has ties to radical Muslims. But supporters have raised $140,000 for his defense from several mosques and other houses of worship.

"You are going to have some people who have negative reactions," said Khader Assab, of Little Falls, a longtime member of the mosque. "Actually, this imam is opening the community in so many ways. He's not just helping Muslims."

Other high-profile cases against American mosque leaders haven't prompted this much unified support, according to Bagby, the Islamic Studies professor who has followed the imam's case.

In 2004, Mohammed El-Mezain, the Paterson mosque's former imam, was accused of raising funds for a nonprofit assisting Hamas. Last year, El-Mezain was found not guilty on 31 of 32 charges. The jury was deadlocked on the last charge.

At the time, mosque members felt angry and disheartened by the controversy, said Dr. Aref Assaf, a longtime member who is leading the campaign for Qatanani. But several members said Qatanani's efforts to reach out to law enforcement and the broader public quelled backlash. And worshippers didn't feel as attached to the previous imam as Qatanani.

"This is a defining moment in our community's history," Assaf said.

If the imam is allowed to stay in Paterson, mosque members will have reason to trust the American justice system, said Mohamad Younes, president of the American Muslim Union in Paterson.

The opposite result would reduce the center's membership, as attendees said Qatanani encouraged many different Muslims to participate there. It would also chill community members from cooperating with law enforcement and other institutions, as Qatanani consistently has done, he said.

"You would have a double standard," Younes said.

Qatanani maintains that if he must leave, it is an act of God's will and he will move on. He and his wife have family members in Jordan and the West Bank. During a sermon Tuesday night, he encouraged the 100 people gathered to let Allah do his work.

"You will be safe even in the middle of an ocean," said Qatanani, through a translator. "Do good, and Allah will take care of you."

Ida Kahlil, 45, a mosque member and owner of a gift business in Wayne, intends to take off work to attend the rallies, though the days leading to Mother's Day are some of the busiest for her. The thought of the imam's departure prompted her to cry.

"He is like our pope," said Kahlil, who drives to the mosque from West Milford rather than attend ones closer to her home.