Top Senate Dem calls for probe into Muslims prosecuted by DOJ for illegal border crossings

Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., called connected the Department of Justice connected Thursday to analyse whether migrants from Muslim-majority countries are being targeted for prosecution erstwhile crossing the confederate borderline successful Texas.

In letters to Attorney General Merrick Garland and DOJ Inspector General Michael Horowitz, Durbin cited "the emergence of Islamophobic attacks" and urged the officials to respond swiftly to questions implicit imaginable favoritism against individuals from Muslim-majority countries.

The Senate Judiciary president noted that successful a Los Angeles Times probe of prosecutions during an 18-month play opening successful October 2021, implicit 60% of individuals charged nether a conception of the U.S. codification that criminalizes nonaccomplishment to study oneself astatine a designated U.S. borderline crossing constituent were from Muslim-majority countries. The Los Angeles Times gave examples of Afghanistan, Syria, Iran and Mali arsenic immoderate of the countries that the prosecuted individuals hailed from. 

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Sen. Dick Durbin asked the Department of Justice to analyse if radical from Muslim-majority countries who illegally transverse the confederate borderline are being discriminated against successful prosecutions. (Getty Images)

"These trends are highly troubling," Durbin claimed. "Prosecutions targeting individuals based connected their religion, nationalist origin, oregon different protected characteristics are anathema to the regularisation of law." 

As for the accrued usage of a definite conception of customs law, arsenic alleged by Durbin successful his letter, Lora Ries, the manager of the Border Security and Immigration Center astatine The Heritage Foundation, told Fox News Digital, "It is imaginable that this hasn't been utilized overmuch arsenic a charge, but truthful what?"

"If radical are crossing illegally, what's incorrect and tragic? I mean, Congress passed this law, truthful wherefore can't prosecutors usage that to complaint radical crossing illegally?" she asked. 

Iran and Syria are some designated by the Department of State arsenic authorities sponsors of terrorism. In the State Department's 2022 Country Reports connected Terrorism, it outlines threats beyond these countries. The Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) "maintained an enduring planetary enterprise, promoting a large-scale coercion campaign crossed the Middle East, Africa, and Asia," it wrote astatine the time.

The State Department besides identified threats successful Afghanistan pursuing the U.S.'s 2021 withdrawal deemed by galore to person been conducted improperly, specified arsenic attacks connected civilians by ISIS-Khorasan (ISIS-K). 

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A combatant of the Islamic State of Iraq successful the metropolis of Mosul, June 23, 2014. (Reuters)

According to Durbin, "The interest that the Department of Justice (DOJ) is targeting for prosecution migrants from Muslim-majority countries is heightened by the use" of the nonaccomplishment to study law. 

"I constitute to explicit superior interest implicit reports that asylum seekers from Muslim-majority countries are being disproportionately prosecuted for alleged improper introduction by the Justice Department," helium said, besides citing the summation successful prosecution nether the instrumentality "nationwide."

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A radical of implicit 100 migrants attempts to participate the U.S. illegally by rushing the border, March 21, 2024. (James Breeden for New York Post / Mega)

Durbin's missive to Horowitz additionally requested that the inspector wide "investigate whether the Justice Department is oregon has been targeting migrants for prosecution based connected their religion, nationalist origin, oregon immoderate different protected characteristic."

The DOJ declined to remark erstwhile reached by Fox News Digital.

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This comes arsenic FBI Director Christopher Wray precocious warned Congress of the heightened menace of terrorism, peculiarly arsenic it relates to the vulnerability of the confederate border. 

FBI manager nominee Christopher Wray testifies during his confirmation proceeding earlier the Senate Judiciary Committee connected July 12, 2017, connected Capitol Hill. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

Asked astir planetary coercion threats, Wray told Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., the Judiciary Committee ranking member, past year, "I americium acrophobic that we are in… a heightened menace situation from overseas violent organizations for a full big of reasons," highlighting "Their quality to exploit immoderate larboard of entry, including our southwest border." 

"We person seen an summation successful alleged KSTs, ‘known oregon suspected terrorists’, attempting to transverse implicit the past 5 years," helium said astatine the time. 

Reacting to the letters, Ries claimed Durbin was "trying to marque this astir Islamophobia, but the cartels displacement wherever they're crossing [and] who they're crossing constantly." She noted that Durbin wasn't asking Customs and Border Protection for accusation related to "the constitution of overseas nationals crossing occidental Texas astatine that clip oregon those times."

She additionally questioned Durbin's prime to item the lawsuit of an incarcerated Afghan, without considering the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services Afghan parole programme already successful spot to assistance individuals seeking introduction to the U.S.

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Durbin's bureau did not supply remark regarding Ries' questions successful clip for publication.