Feds Seize Four Mosques, New York Skyscraper Linked to Iranian Government

At the New York Post, "Feds Move to Seize Mosques, NYC Skyscraper Possibly Linked to Iran":

Federal prosecutors Thursday took steps to seize four U.S. mosques and a Fifth Avenue skyscraper 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 assets include Islamic centers in New York City, Maryland, California and Houston, 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.

More background at the Guardian, "U.S. Mosques and New York Skyscraper Seized Over Iran Links":

Prosecutors claim that the foundation and the company have been engaged in money laundering, with the cash sent back to Tehran.

The move could be designed to punish the Tehran government at time when its relations with the US are already strained over Iran's alleged nuclear weapons programme.

But the Obama administration also risks incurring the anger of American Muslims if the mosques, all Shia, are seized. The takeover of mosques would also raise constitutional questions around the right of freedom to religion.

The move comes at a sensitive time, with a debate under way in the US over the loyalty of American Muslims after the shooting at Fort Hood last week. Major Nadil Malik Hasan was yesterday charged with 13 counts of premeditated murder.

The Alavi Foundation, on its website, declares its mission to be the promotion of charitable and philanthropic causes through educational, religious and cultural programmes.

"The foundation does this by making contributions to not-for-profit organisations within the United States that support interfaith harmony and promote Islamic culture and Persian language, literature and civilisation," it says.

It says it funds these activities through rent from the Fifth Avenue skyscraper, Piaget, which was built by a company owned by the Shah of Iran in 1978 and whose ownership passed to the Iranian republic after the 1979 Islamist revolution. Tax records show that the foundation earned $4.5m in rent in 2007.

New York prosecutors alleged that the foundation, through the company Assa, illegally funnelled millions in rental income back to Iran's state-owned Bank Melli, which the US claims has been involved in Tehran's alleged attempts to secure a nuclear weapon.

Plus, Bare Naked Islam, "FEDS MOVE TO SEIZE 4 MOSQUES AND NYC SKYSCRAPER OWNED BY MUSLIM GROUP."

GET READY TO SEE A LOT OF ARRESTS OF MUSLIMS, EVEN MORE RADICAL THAN THE FORT HOOD JIHADIST.

And Rusty Shackleford exclaims, "Wow. Just, wow. I mean, this is a first, right? .... Somebody in the AG's office has found himself a pair!"

Also, Atlas Shrugs, "Biggest Counterterrorism Seizures in U.S. History: Feds Seize N.Y. Skyscraper, 4 Mosques."