US Immigration Judge Authorizes Deportation of Palestinian Community Leader Salah Sarsour

A US immigration judge has ruled that the government can deport Salah Sarsour, a Palestinian community leader and permanent resident who heads the Islamic Society of Milwaukee.

The society is home to Wisconsin’s largest mosque, placing Sarsour at the head of a prominent Muslim institution in the state.

The ruling permits his deportation under a law dating to the Cold War era. The available details do not identify the specific provision invoked or explain the grounds presented by the government.

Sarsour’s permanent residency is central to the case: he holds legal resident status in the United States, rather than US citizenship. The ruling authorizes the government to deport him but does not establish that his removal has taken place.