Dearborn No. 2 on Government List of Cities with Suspected Terrorist Ties

Dearborn is No. 2 on the government’s list of U.S. cities with the highest number of residents with suspected terrorist ties, according to classified government documents posted by The Intercept, an online magazine.

The secret documents from the National Counterterrorism’s Center Directorate of Terrorist Identities lists New York City, a city of 8 million, as the top U.S. city for residents believed to be linked to terrorist groups, The Detroit News reports.

Dearborn, a city of about 96,500, has one of the largest concentrations of Arab-Americans – about 40 percent of residents – in the country. Three much larger cities – Houston, San Diego and Chicago – were third, fourth and fifth on the list, respectively, but the government doesn’t say exactly how many known or suspected terrorists are living in the cities.

The report noted that Dearborn is much smaller than the other cities in the top five and “had been disproportionately targeted for watchlisting.”

The reports has a “chilling effect on our community” and causes worry among Dearborn Muslims as they go to their local mosques or elsewhere in the community, Dawud Walid, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, told The Detroit News.

He said the government document “in no way jibes with the reality of who is committing terrorism” and suggests the Obama administration is targeting Muslims in general, but Dearborn in particular.

the end of 2013 who were either known or suspected terrorists, the report said. They are among 1 million people worldwide believed to be tied to terrorism.

Individuals are nominated for inclusion on the list by the FBI, CIA and other government agencies.The report said the FBI has been ubiquitous in Dearborn since the 9/11 terrorist attacks, and Arab-Americans have felt unfairly scrutinized, Walid said.

It’s not only problematic that an entire community has been labeled, he said, but the report “should raise questions about how our federal resources are being used.” It doesn’t make sense for the FBI to send agents and informants to Dearborn, he said.

» For the full report, read The Detroit News.

PHOTO: About 40 percent of the 96,500 residents of Dearborn are Arab-Americans, and many of them are Muslims. A new report from the government saying the city has the second-highest number of residents with terrorist ties has a ”chilling effect” on Muslims as they go to mosque, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations said. (Photo of Islamic Center of America via Wikipedia commons)