Feds move to seize mosques

aerial

Feds move to seize mosques, NYC skyscraper possibly linked to Iran

Federal prosecutors Thursday took steps to seize four U.S. mosques and a Fifth Avenue skyscraper owned by a nonprofit Muslim organization long suspected of being secretly controlled by the Iranian government.

In what could prove to be one of the biggest counterterrorism seizures in U.S. history, prosecutors filed a civil complaint in federal court seeking the forfeiture of more than $500 million in assets of the Alavi Foundation and an alleged front company.

The assets include Islamic centers in New York City, Maryland, California and Houston, more than 100 acres in Virginia, and a 36-story office tower in New York.

Seizing the properties would be a sharp blow against Iran, which has been accused by the U.S. government of bankrolling terrorism and seeking a nuclear bomb.

A telephone call and e-mail to Iran's U.N. Mission seeking comment were not immediately answered.

It is extremely rare for U.S. law enforcement authorities to seize a house of worship, a step fraught with questions about the First Amendment right to freedom of religion.

The action against the Shiite Muslim mosques is sure to inflame relations between the U.S. government and American Muslims, many of whom are fearful of a backlash after last week's Fort Hood shooting rampage, blamed on a Muslim American soldier.

The mosques and the office tower will remain open while the forfeiture case works its way through court in what could be a long process. What will happen to them if the government ultimately prevails is unclear. But the government typically sells properties it has seized through forfeiture, and the proceeds are sometimes distributed to crime victims.

There were no raids Thursday as part of the forfeiture action. The government is simply required to post notices of the civil complaint on the property.

Prosecutors said the Alavi Foundation, through a front company known as Assa Corp., illegally funneled millions in rental income back to Iran's state-owned Bank Melli. Bank Melli has been accused by a U.S. Treasury official of providing support for Iran's nuclear program, and it is illegal in the United States to do business with the bank.

Government officials have long suspected the foundation was an arm of the Iranian government; a 97-page complaint details involvement of several top officials in foundation business, including the country's deputy prime minister and ambassadors to the United Nations.

"For two decades, the Alavi Foundation's affairs have been directed by various Iranian officials, including Iranian ambassadors to the United Nations, in violation of a series of American laws," U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement.

The skyscraper, known as the Piaget building, was erected in the 1970s under the shah of Iran, who was overthrown in 1979. The tenants include law and investment firms and other businesses.

The sleek, modern building, last valued at $570 million to $650 million in 2007, has served as important source of income for the foundation over the past 36 years. The most recent tax records show the foundation earned $4.5 million from rents in 2007.

Rents collected from the building help fund the centers and other ventures, such as sending imprisoned Muslims in the U.S. educational literature. The foundation has also invested in dozens of mosques around the country and supported Iranian academics at prominent universities.

If federal prosecutors seize the skyscraper, the Alavi Foundation would have almost no way to continue supporting the Islamic centers, which house schools and mosques. That could leave a major void in Shiite communities, and hard feelings toward the FBI.

Legal scholars who specialize in religious liberty issues said they know of only a few cases in U.S. history in which law enforcement authorities have seized a house of worship. Marc Stern, a religious-liberty expert with the American Jewish Congress, called such cases "extremely rare."

The Alavi Foundation is the successor organization to the Pahlavi Foundation, a nonprofit group used by the shah to advance Iran's charitable interests in America. But authorities said its agenda changed after the fall of the shah.

In 2007, the United States accused Bank Melli of providing services to Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs and put the bank on its list of companies whose assets must be frozen.

The United States has imposed sanctions against various other Iranian banks and other businesses.


NY POST

TriumphantAngel

Edit: thanks for fixing original post.

Commy

yep. we should bomb iran.
'

goddamn iranians.

Byrnzie

'Bank Melli has been accused by a U.S. Treasury official of providing support for Iran's nuclear program..'

Except Iran has no nuclear weapons program.

But Americans need a new enemy, so Iran will be that enemy by whatever means necessary.

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=85 ... =351020104

US intel confirms Iran not developing nukes
Fri, 13 Feb 2009

'The new chief of US intelligence has confirmed the findings of a 2007 intelligence report that Iran has no nuclear weapons program.

Dennis Blair told the Senate Intelligence Committee that his organization has assessed that Tehran does not have nuclear weapons design and weaponization work.

A National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), issued in November 2007 by the sixteen US intelligence agencies, clarified that Iran was not pursuing a nuclear weapons program.

The 2007 intelligence report was widely seen as a setback for Bush administration efforts to pressure Iran and halt its nuclear program.

The UN nuclear watchdog, which has carried out the highest number of inspections in its history on Iranian nuclear sites, has also found nothing to indicate that the program has diverted toward weaponization...'

TriumphantAngel

Byrnzie wrote:

Except Iran has no nuclear weapons program.

But Americans need a new enemy, so Iran will be that enemy by whatever means necessary.'

quoted for truth.

dear lazy, believe anything you are told, war mongering americans,

i have a message for some of you. you know who you are.
fool me once, shame on you; fool me twice, shame on me.
that is all.

hugs

TriumphantAngel.

gimmesometruth27

Byrnzie wrote:

'Bank Melli has been accused by a U.S. Treasury official of providing support for Iran's nuclear program..'

Except Iran has no nuclear weapons program.

But Americans need a new enemy, so Iran will be that enemy by whatever means necessary.

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=85 ... =351020104

US intel confirms Iran not developing nukes
Fri, 13 Feb 2009

'The new chief of US intelligence has confirmed the findings of a 2007 intelligence report that Iran has no nuclear weapons program.

Dennis Blair told the Senate Intelligence Committee that his organization has assessed that Tehran does not have nuclear weapons design and weaponization work.

A National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), issued in November 2007 by the sixteen US intelligence agencies, clarified that Iran was not pursuing a nuclear weapons program.

The 2007 intelligence report was widely seen as a setback for Bush administration efforts to pressure Iran and halt its nuclear program.

The UN nuclear watchdog, which has carried out the highest number of inspections in its history on Iranian nuclear sites, has also found nothing to indicate that the program has diverted toward weaponization...'

this will not be enough proof for some around here...i can see the replies now...

"that was sooooo 9 months ago. who is to say they do not have a "nukuler" program now? we have to invade NOW to make sure they don't get weapons!!"

rebornFixer

EDIT: Interesting article, Brynzie.

he still stands

Yup. War is Peace.

Pepe Silvia

Byrnzie wrote:

'Bank Melli has been accused by a U.S. Treasury official of providing support for Iran's nuclear program..'

Except Iran has no nuclear weapons program.

But Americans need a new enemy, so Iran will be that enemy by whatever means necessary.

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=85 ... =351020104

US intel confirms Iran not developing nukes
Fri, 13 Feb 2009

'The new chief of US intelligence has confirmed the findings of a 2007 intelligence report that Iran has no nuclear weapons program.

Dennis Blair told the Senate Intelligence Committee that his organization has assessed that Tehran does not have nuclear weapons design and weaponization work.

A National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), issued in November 2007 by the sixteen US intelligence agencies, clarified that Iran was not pursuing a nuclear weapons program.

The 2007 intelligence report was widely seen as a setback for Bush administration efforts to pressure Iran and halt its nuclear program.

The UN nuclear watchdog, which has carried out the highest number of inspections in its history on Iranian nuclear sites, has also found nothing to indicate that the program has diverted toward weaponization...'

before 9/11 happened i remember reading something about there being some nukes, like briefcase bombs, being unaccounted for in parts of the collapsed USSR....i wonder if there was an event with a small bomb how quickly would Iran be the suspect?

gimmesometruth27

Pepe Silvia wrote:

Byrnzie wrote:

'Bank Melli has been accused by a U.S. Treasury official of providing support for Iran's nuclear program..'

Except Iran has no nuclear weapons program.

But Americans need a new enemy, so Iran will be that enemy by whatever means necessary.

http://www.presstv.ir/detail.aspx?id=85 ... =351020104

US intel confirms Iran not developing nukes
Fri, 13 Feb 2009

'The new chief of US intelligence has confirmed the findings of a 2007 intelligence report that Iran has no nuclear weapons program.

Dennis Blair told the Senate Intelligence Committee that his organization has assessed that Tehran does not have nuclear weapons design and weaponization work.

A National Intelligence Estimate (NIE), issued in November 2007 by the sixteen US intelligence agencies, clarified that Iran was not pursuing a nuclear weapons program.

The 2007 intelligence report was widely seen as a setback for Bush administration efforts to pressure Iran and halt its nuclear program.

The UN nuclear watchdog, which has carried out the highest number of inspections in its history on Iranian nuclear sites, has also found nothing to indicate that the program has diverted toward weaponization...'

before 9/11 happened i remember reading something about there being some nukes, like briefcase bombs, being unaccounted for in parts of the collapsed USSR....i wonder if there was an event with a small bomb how quickly would Iran be the suspect?

iran would be immediately blamed. they are the "threat du jour" these days. everybody knows that every country has to have an imaginary boogeyman to keep the citizens on edge and frieghtened....no wait. that is just here in the US....