ICE Detains Milwaukee Mosque President Salah Sarsour — What We Know So Far

ICE Detains Milwaukee Mosque President Salah

 Sarsour — What We Know So Far

 Something massive just dropped, and the media is trying to bury it.

Tulsi Gabbard has sent criminal referrals to the DOJ targeting key figures from one of the most controversial moments in modern American political history. And the newly-declassified documents she released this week are exposing details about the 2019 Trump impeachment that were deliberately hidden from the public for years.

What those records reveal about the whistleblower's meetings before the complaint was filed, and what the former intelligence watchdog did, and didn't do, during his investigation, raises serious questions about whether any of it was legitimate from the start.
The names. The timeline. The paper trail. It's all coming out now.

The image you shared asks a yes/no question about a real arrest that has split Milwaukee and drawn national attention: U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained Salah Sarsour, the president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee, in late March 2025.

Here's what is on the record from both sides, without the meme framing.

Who was detained

Sarsour, 53, is a Palestinian American who has lived in Milwaukee for more than 30 years and has been a legal U.S. permanent resident since the early 1990s.

Supporters rallied in Milwaukee calling for the release of Salah Sarsour, the president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee, nearly two weeks after federal immigration agents detained him.

The Islamic Society of Milwaukee (ISM) is Wisconsin's largest mosque. ISM said Sarsour grew up in the Israeli-occupied West Bank and has six U.S.-born children.

How the arrest happened

ICE agents surrounded Sarsour outside a building he owns, where he was picking up mail, and detained him on March 30. Sarsour told the mosque's executive director that he counted 12 federal vehicles.

The Islamic Society of Milwaukee said ICE agents followed Salah Sarsour on Monday as he left his home, surrounded his vehicle, and took him into custody.

DHS said it worked with the U.S. Marshals Service to take Sarsour into custody.

Initial reports varied on the exact date (March 30 vs. April 2), but all agree it was a traffic-stop-style detention, not a raid on the mosque.

What ICE/DHS alleges

The government has given two overlapping justifications:

Immigration fraud. ICE agents detained ISM President Salah Sarsour at his Milwaukee home on Monday, citing his 1998 green card fraud. ICE claims he lied on his application.

National security. DHS accused him of lying on his immigration forms and funding terror organizations. In its press release, DHS identified him as a "criminal illegal alien from Jordan" and said he was suspected of funding terrorists.

The Department also invoked the rarely used "foreign policy" ground of deportability, alleging he threatened U.S. foreign policy and supported terrorism.

Sarsour denies supporting Hamas and faces deportation under Trump's immigration policies.

What his supporters say

Ten Muslim civil rights groups, the ACLU of Wisconsin, and local elected officials condemned the arrest.

Rights groups, Milwaukee leaders slam ICE's arrest of Palestinian advocate Salah Sarsour, who was detained while driving on March 30. The letter highlights his 32-year U.S. residency and family's struggle to locate him, linking his detention to broader Trump-era efforts to target pro-Palestinian activists.

The ACLU of Wisconsin condemns the arrest, arguing it targets dissenters and violates constitutional rights to free speech.

Mosque leaders called it a politically motivated arrest intended to remove a pro-Palestinian voice from the U.S.

His attorneys say he has no U.S. criminal record, has held a green card since 1993, and that the "foreign policy threat" claim has no merit.

Why this case is different

This is not a typical undocumented-entry case. Sarsour is a long-term legal permanent resident, a business owner, and the head of a major religious institution.

Two legal issues are colliding:

Old paperwork. The government can revoke a green card decades later if it proves fraud in the original application, even without a new crime.

Speech and advocacy. ICE's public statements link the arrest to his pro-Palestinian activism and alleged ties to American Muslims for Palestine (AMP). Civil-rights groups argue that makes it a First Amendment case, not just immigration.

Where the case stands now

As of April 2025:

Sarsour was being held in ICE detention pending removal proceedings in immigration court, which uses a lower "clear and convincing" standard than criminal court.

More than 100 people gathered Sunday, April 12, along North Lincoln Memorial Drive, demanding Sarsour's release.

No criminal charges have been filed in federal district court; the matter is administrative deportation based on the 1998 application and the foreign-policy allegation.

The question in your meme

"Do you support ICE arresting?" is ultimately a policy question, not a factual one.[him]

Supporters of the arrest point to DHS's claim that he lied on immigration forms and was suspected of funding terror organizations, arguing that even longtime residents must face consequences for fraud.

Opponents point to his 32-year U.S. residency, his family's struggle to locate him, and the timing amid broader ICE crackdowns on pro-Palestinian activists, arguing the arrest chills religious leadership and political speech.

Immigration judges, not social media polls, will decide whether the 1998 paperwork error and the national-security allegations meet the legal threshold for deportation. Until then, the case remains exactly what both sides describe it as: a test of how far the government can go to remove a legal permanent resident based on decades-old forms and current political advocacy.