May, 04 2010, 03:47pm EDT
For Immediate Release
Contact:
CAIR-NY Civil Rights Director Aliya Latif,
212-870-2002, 732-429-4268,
E-Mail: alatif@cair.com;Â
CAIR: Muslims Welcome Arrest in Times Square Bomb Plot
WASHINGTON
A prominent national Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization
today welcomed the arrest of a suspect in connection with last weekend's
failed car bomb attack on Times Square. (View video of today's news conference.)
Become a Fan of CAIR on Facebook
Subscribe to CAIR's E-Mail List
The Washington-based Council on American-Islamic Relations
(CAIR), along with several other national and regional Muslim groups,*
said the alleged actions of the Pakistani-American suspect are not
representative of the nation's Muslim community and urged fellow
citizens not to allow the incident to be exploited to advance growing
anti-Islam sentiment.
In a statement released this afternoon at a news conference in
Washington, D.C., CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad
said in part: (View video of today's news conference.)
"On behalf of the American Muslim community, we condemn the
attack in Times Square and thank all those who reported their
suspicions, disarmed the bomb or are participating in the current
investigation. We welcome the arrest of a suspect and hope that anyone
involved in the attack will be apprehended and prosecuted to the full
extent of the law."American Muslims repudiate all acts of terrorism and will
continue to work with local, state and federal law enforcement
authorities to keep our nation safe and secure. We ask anyone who has
information about this attack to contact local police and the FBI. Any
person who is afraid to contact the authorities directly should contact
CAIR. We will then assist these individuals in contacting relevant
authorities."In no way, shape or form does this attack represent American
Muslims or what they stand for as a faith community. We must also, as a
civil rights group, remind everyone that we are a nation of laws and
that in our system of justice, every suspect is innocent until proven
guilty."We urge that our fellow citizens and our nation's leaders
reject the inevitable exploitation of this incident by those individuals
and groups devoted to demonizing Islam, marginalizing American Muslims
and feeding the unfortunately growing Islamophobic sentiment in our
society."
SEE: Local Pakistani Residents Concerned About Fallout After
Arrest
Awad said he has asked CAIR's New York and Connecticut offices
to work with local Muslim communities to offer all possible assistance
to investigators.
He also urged American Muslim individuals and institutions to
protect against any possible backlash by reviewing advice on security
procedures contained in CAIR's "Muslim Community Safety Kit."
* Other speakers at today's news conference included:
- Imam Mahdi Bray, Executive Director,
Muslim American Society (MAS) Freedom - Asma Hanif, Chairperson, Council of Muslim
Organizations (CCMO) in the Greater Washington, D.C., Area - Alejandro Beutel, Government Liason, Muslim
Public Affairs Council (MPAC)
CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy
organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam,
encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims,
and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) is a grassroots civil rights and advocacy group. CAIR is America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance understanding of Islam, protect civil rights, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
(202) 488-8787LATEST NEWS
Watchdog Urges FEC to Investigate Trump Campaign Over Scheme for Legal Fees
"By not disclosing the vendors that actually provided legal services, the Trump-affiliated committees effectively blocked the public from knowing which attorneys and firms are being paid—and how much."
Apr 24, 2024
A campaign finance watchdog on Wednesday filed a Federal Election Commission complaint accusing former President Donald Trump's 2024 campaign, affiliated political groups, and an accounting firm of violating U.S. law in a scheme "seemingly designed to obscure the true recipients of a noteworthy portion of Trump's legal bills."
The Washington, D.C.-based Campaign Legal Center (CLC) said that "evidence appears to show an illegal arrangement between several Trump-affiliated committees and a compliance firm named Red Curve Solutions that is designed to obscure the identities of those providing legal services and how much they are being paid."
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The watchdog also said that Red Curve appears to be "making or facilitating illegal contributions that violate either federal contribution limits or the prohibition on corporate contributions."
According to CLC:
Red Curve is a domestic limited liability company that offers compliance and FEC reporting services but does not appear to offer any legal services. It is managed by Bradley Crate, who also serves as the treasurer for each of the five Trump-affiliated committees concerned in this complaint, as well as over 200 other federal committees.
According to filings with the FEC, Red Curve appears to have been fronting legal costs for Trump since at least December 2022, with Trump-affiliated committees repaying the company later. This arrangement appears to violate FEC rules that require campaigns to disclose not only the entity being reimbursed (here, Red Curve) but also the underlying vendor. By not disclosing the vendors that actually provided legal services, the Trump-affiliated committees effectively blocked the public from knowing which attorneys and firms are being paid—and how much they are being paid—through this arrangement.
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Trump—who is the presumptive 2024 GOP presidential nominee—faces 91 federal and state felony charges related to his role in the January 6 insurrection and his organization's business practices. He is currently on trial in New York for allegedly falsifying business records related to hush money payments to cover up sex scandals during the 2016 election cycle. The twice-impeached former president has been open about his use of campaign donations to pay his legal costs.
The new CLC filing comes a day after the watchdog filed separate FEC complaints urging investigations into a pair of Trump-affiliated "scam PACs," which "pretend to fundraise for major candidates or issues while secretly diverting almost all of their donors' money back into fundraising or the fraudsters' own pockets."
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Three Republicans in the Arizona House of Representatives on Wednesday joined with Democrats to advance legislation that would repeal an 1864 ban on abortion—a development rights advocates welcomed while stressing that the fight is far from over.
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"The state Senate could vote on the repeal as early as next Wednesday, after the bill comes on the floor for a 'third reading,' as is required under chamber rules," according toNBC News. Democratic Gov. Katie Hobbs on Wednesday toldThe Washington Post that "I am hopeful the Senate does the right thing and sends it to my desk so I can sign it."
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Florez noted that "even with the repeal of the Civil War-era ban, the state will still have a ban on abortion after 15 weeks of pregnancy that denies people access to critical care. And lawmakers continue to attack Arizonans' ability to access reproductive healthcare. Our right to control our bodies and lives is hanging on by a thread."
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The Arizona Abortion Access Act is a proposed state constitutional amendment that would prevent many limits on abortions before fetal viability and safeguard access to care after viability to protect the life or physical or mental health of the patient.
The coalition supporting the amendment, Arizona for Abortion Access, highlighted on social media that the House-approved bill "did not include the emergency clause required to stop the 1864 ban from taking effect on June 8," meaning H.B. 2677 wouldn't apply until 90 days after the end of the legislative session.
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Two journalists on Tuesday questioned Vedant Patel, a spokesperson for the U.S. State Department, about the administration's response to the hundreds of bodies found at Gaza City's al-Shifa Hospital and Nasser Hospital in Khan Younis as well as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk's call for an independent investigation.
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"Somehow I don't think the U.S. State Department would defer to Russia as a credible source to investigate itself if a mass grave were discovered in Ukrainian territory it had occupied," Finucane said on social media in response to Stanage's questioning.
Meanwhile, European Union spokesperson Peter Stano made clear Tuesday that the E.U. supports an independent probe.
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Human rights groups around the world joined the call for an independent investigation on Wednesday, as the official death toll in Gaza hit 34,262 with 77,229 people injured and thousands more missing and presumed dead beneath the rubble.
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Amnesty International senior director of research, advocacy, policy, and campaigns Erika Guevara Rosas said in a statement that "the harrowing discovery of these mass graves underscores the urgency of ensuring immediate access for human rights investigators, including forensic experts, to the occupied Gaza Strip to ensure that evidence is preserved and to carry out independent and transparent investigations with the aim of guaranteeing accountability for any violations of international law."
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