Silicon Investor (SI) -- The First Internet Community

STOCKTALK

We've detected that you're using an ad content blocking browser plug-in or feature. Ads provide a critical source of revenue to the continued operation of Silicon Investor. We ask that you disable ad blocking while on Silicon Investor in the best interests of our community. If you are not using an ad blocker but are still receiving this message, make sure your browser's tracking protection is set to the 'standard' level.

Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Brian Sullivan who wrote (8967)	9/23/2003 2:11:23 AM
From: LindyBill	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 793697

Why is the Government being so obstinate about investigating these Muslim groups. The question they need to ask is simple. "Are you guys Wahhabi based?" If they are, Out! ---------------------------------------------------------------- washingtonpost.com Probe of 2 Groups That Train Muslim Chaplains Sought By John Mintz and Susan Schmidt Washington Post Staff Writers Tuesday, September 23, 2003; Page A03 Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-N.Y.) yesterday renewed his request for an investigation into two institutes that train Islamic chaplains for the military in light of the Sept. 10 arrest of Army Capt. James "Yousef" Yee, an imam who ministered to detainees held at the U.S. Navy base in Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Six months ago, Schumer asked the Pentagon to launch an internal review of the way the military determines the reliability of Muslim clerics in the armed services, but so far no such effort has been undertaken, officials said yesterday. The FBI and the U.S. military are sorting out which of them will take the lead in investigating Yee, who was detained in connection with a probe into possible espionage, officials said. A Chinese American who converted to Islam before joining the service as a chaplain, Yee has been held at a Navy brig in Charleston, S.C., following his arrest two weeks ago at a Navy base in Jacksonville, Fla. When he was arrested, he had documents concerning some of the 660 detainees at the Guantanamo Bay prison camp and their U.S. government interrogators, as well as sketches of facilities at the camp, officials said. A chaplain would not ordinarily have access to such documents, officials said. A military magistrate who reviewed Yee's case on Sept. 15 found there was adequate evidence to justify his continued confinement, according to officials at U.S. Southern Command. Yee is a 1990 graduate of West Point who commanded a Patriot missile unit before leaving the military, converting to Islam and studying for four years in Syria. He rejoined the military in the late 1990s and became a cleric at Fort Lewis in Washington state. Ten months ago he became the imam at Guantanamo Bay, where he counseled prisoners and kept prison officials advised of detainees' morale. Yesterday Schumer said Yee's arrest "only underscores the need for a comprehensive investigation" into the matter. Schumer previously raised questions about two institutes that train Islamic chaplains for the military: the Leesburg-based Graduate School of Islamic and Social Sciences (GSISS); and the American Muslim Armed Forces and Veteran Affairs Council, which helped train Yee. Despite Schumer's request, Pentagon and Army spokesmen said yesterday there is no review of the chaplain program being conducted. GSISS was raided by federal agents in 2002 as part of a probe of a cluster of Northern Virginia companies and institutes that have alleged dealings with terrorists. The council is an affiliate of the Alexandria-based American Muslim Foundation, which is being investigated in the same probe. Officials of both groups have denied any ties to terrorists. washingtonpost.com