A United States immigration judge has ruled that Salah Sarsour, the Palestinian-born president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee and leader of Wisconsin's largest mosque, can be deported on the grounds that he poses a foreign policy threat. The same ruling rejected the US government's allegation that Sarsour lied on his green card application.

Immigration Judge Jayme Salinardi issued the decision, the Associated Press reported. Sarsour called the ruling "deeply disappointing" and said he plans to appeal.

"I will continue fighting to defend the right to free speech and to stay in the country I have called home for more than three decades," he said in a statement.

Background of the case

ICE officers detained Sarsour in Milwaukee in March. In June, a federal judge ordered his release, writing that Sarsour had raised a "substantial" claim that the Trump administration may have targeted him for speaking out against Israel and advocating for Palestinian rights. The administration has appealed that release decision.

The US government has argued that Sarsour's decades-old terrorism-related convictions in Israel make him a national security threat, and alleged that he concealed those convictions when applying for a green card. Judge Salinardi agreed that deportation on foreign-policy grounds is permissible but rejected the misrepresentation allegation.

What the record shows

Sarsour was born in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and has lived in the United States since 1993. Israel imprisoned him in 1988 after he confessed to throwing a Molotov cocktail and stones at Israeli military personnel. In 1995, an Israeli court convicted him of attempting to possess weapons and ammunition.

Sarsour denies committing the offences. His lawyers argue that Israeli authorities tortured and coerced him into confessing. He has no criminal record in the United States, and his legal team says US authorities have known about the Israeli convictions for decades and that he never concealed the information from immigration officials.

"If I am sent back to the West Bank, it means the end of my life," Sarsour told the AP in an interview on Tuesday.

Jawad Boulos, who represented Sarsour during his Israeli case, testified that he was coerced into confessing and was not convicted of an offence linking him to a terrorist organisation. Other witnesses, including Sarsour's brother, testified about his physical condition and alleged mistreatment in Israeli custody. The Israeli government rejects allegations of abuse and wrongdoing in its treatment of Palestinian prisoners.

The appeal ahead

Sarsour's attorney, Patrick Taurel, said his client was being unfairly targeted and would challenge the deportation order.

"If Salah can be deported for his speech in support of Palestinian rights, anyone can face the same fate," Taurel said, according to the AP.

The legal team expects to argue that Sarsour could face torture if returned to the West Bank. Taurel acknowledged that proving such a claim would be difficult but said Sarsour's previous experience and Israel's treatment of similarly situated Palestinians could support the case.

Court documents cited by the AP show that Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a memo in June 2025 finding that Sarsour could be deported on the same grounds used against Palestinian rights advocates Mahmoud Khalil and Mohsen Mahdawi.

The defense has also questioned why US authorities detained Sarsour only this year despite allegedly knowing about his past in Israel for decades. The federal judge who ordered his release in June noted that ICE and the Department of Homeland Security had not adequately explained why he suddenly became a threat after decades of legal residency.

According to his lawyers, Sarsour lost more than 30 pounds while in ICE custody, raising concerns about his medical treatment. An AP and KFF Health News investigation found that hundreds of immigration detainees across at least 33 states have filed federal lawsuits alleging medical neglect.

Sarsour is among several people arrested in the United States and threatened with deportation after publicly supporting Palestinians since the Israel-Hamas war began in October 2023. Readers should consult official immigration court records and government sources for authoritative guidance on the case.