NYPD Report Indicates Directive to Gather Intel at Shiite Mosques
The AP has been all over a story of NYPD spying on local Muslims, but the recent revelation of a secret police document further details the illicit spying.
A recently-obtained secret police document from the New York Police Department indicated a recommendation of increased surveillance of thousands of Shiite Muslims and the mosques they attended. The report suggested that these individuals should be observed based solely on their religion, with the thought process being that such measures would naturally lead police to find and apprehend Iranian terrorists throughout the Northeast United States.
The document specifically mentioned a handful of mosques ranging from Connecticut to Philadelphia, though none of them have been specifically linked to terrorism, either by federal agencies or other law enforcement arms. Information about the activities of the NYPD in this arena have been reported on for months, but the revelation of the secret documentation make the whole picture come into clearer focus. The move by NYPD to monitor Muslims was conducted jointly with the CIA in a local/federal partnership.
The group being monitored is actually quite small. It is estimated that there are only about 35,000 Shiite Muslims living in the New York area, and only about 8,500 of those are Iranian. However, according to the recently-surfaced report, one analyst noted, "The Palestinian community, although not Shi'a, should also be assessed due to presence of Hamas members and sympathizers and the group's relationship with the Iranian government." One Muslim living in the area, whose mosque was named in the report, was asked about the report and noted indignantly, "If you attack Cuba, are all the Catholics going to attack here? This is called guilt by association. Just because we are the same religion doesn't mean we're going to stand up and harm the United States. It's really absurd."
The document specifically mentioned a handful of mosques ranging from Connecticut to Philadelphia, though none of them have been specifically linked to terrorism, either by federal agencies or other law enforcement arms. Information about the activities of the NYPD in this arena have been reported on for months, but the revelation of the secret documentation make the whole picture come into clearer focus. The move by NYPD to monitor Muslims was conducted jointly with the CIA in a local/federal partnership.
The group being monitored is actually quite small. It is estimated that there are only about 35,000 Shiite Muslims living in the New York area, and only about 8,500 of those are Iranian. However, according to the recently-surfaced report, one analyst noted, "The Palestinian community, although not Shi'a, should also be assessed due to presence of Hamas members and sympathizers and the group's relationship with the Iranian government." One Muslim living in the area, whose mosque was named in the report, was asked about the report and noted indignantly, "If you attack Cuba, are all the Catholics going to attack here? This is called guilt by association. Just because we are the same religion doesn't mean we're going to stand up and harm the United States. It's really absurd."
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