Feds target U.S. mosques, skyscraper linked to Iran

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/nation/6717563.html

Federal prosecutors Thursday took steps to seize a Houston mosque and other U.S. properties 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 other properties targeted included three mosques and a Fifth Avenue skyscraper.

In Houston, prosecutors targeted the Islamic Education Center, located at 2313 S. Voss, an FBI official said.

Faheem Kazimi, chairman of the board of directors of IEC, said Thursday night that the center leases its building from Alavi Foundation. No other connection exists, he said.

"We just heard the news. The Islamic Education Center is a nonprofit independent organization, not affiliated with any other organization," Kazimi said. "We are completely independent."

John D. Winter, the Alavi Foundation’s lawyer, said it intends to litigate the case and prevail. He said the foundation has been cooperating with the government’s investigation for the better part of a year.

“Obviously the foundation is disappointed that the government has decided to bring this action,” Winter said.

According to its Web site, "The Islamic Education Center of Houston serves the community as a center for the Friday congregation, Islamic celebrations, community programs, and above all a center for imparting knowledge about Islam and promoting Islamic values.''

The center's premises on South Voss is occupied by one of Houston's largest Shiia mosques and the Al-Hadi School of Accelerative Learning, a private Islamic school.

"Among the primary goals of IEC is to inform and educate non-Muslims and Muslims about Islam, and to provide information about Islam on varying levels of inquiry, from the casual passer-by to a believing and practicing Muslim who wishes to extend his or her knowledge and level of piety,'' the Web site states.

Worshipper defends center

Distraught worshippers milled around outside the center before evening prayers on Thursday. They said they were confused and didn't know what was going on.

Farouk Abdulghani has three boys who attend IEC's Al-Hadi school.

He said noticed the commotion at the center when the media arrived Thursday afternoon. Because his apartment is nearby, he came over to find out what was going on.

"I know for a fact this center has not done anything wrong or suspicious," Abdulghani said.

He said the allegations were "somewhat of a surprise, but you're always expecting something like this. Muslims always feel they're on the defensive."

Abdulghani said he's worried about the consequences for his community and his children.

"It's really upsetting," he said. "I don't want my kids to lose their school because of something like this."

Hussein Abdi said he moved to the U.S. from Iran more than 30 years ago and he's been worshipping at IEC for two decades. He came today to pray.

"It makes me furious," Abdi said. "We're under attack."

The foundatian's other assets include Islamic centers in New York City, Maryland and California, 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.

Accused of funneling millions

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 an 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 used by the shah to advance Iran's charitable interests in the United States. 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.