Sufian Nabhan is a little worried about the donation he plans to make to poor children as the holy month of Ramadan begins today.
Nabhan used to send money to orphaned children in the Middle East through the Holy Land Foundation in suburban Dallas, one of the three Islamic charities whose assets the Bush administration froze in the past year as part of its terrorism investigation.
Nabhan, like other Metro Detroit Muslims, fears the government will target even more Islamic organizations and his charitable gifts will become frozen again. But he plans to donate anyway.
"I cannot just sit and say they might be closed so I should not donate," said Nabhan, a Dearborn Heights businessman. "I have to donate."
Muslims are required to give 2.5 percent of their annual income to the poor, and many give that and more during Ramadan, the Islamic month of prayer, fasting and alms-giving. But since Sept. 11, three of the nation's largest Islamic charities have come under suspicion for contributing to terrorist activities: The Texas-based Holy Land Foundation and two suburban Chicago charities, the Benevolence International Foundation and the Global Relief Foundation.
Global Relief was co-founded by an Ann Arbor man, Rabih Haddad, who has been in federal custody since Dec. 14, when he was arrested for overstaying a tourist visa. Last month, the Bush administration declared Global Relief a specially-designated terrorist group, accusing it of links to Osama Bin Laden and al-Qaida, and the United Nations asked member states to freeze the group's assets.
"It brought chilling feelings to so many people. Now, they're really confused as to where they should donate and how," said Imad Hamad, regional director of the American Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee.
Hamad's group plans to hold a dinner to break the fast, known in Arabic as an iftar dinner, on Nov. 19 with top federal law enforcement officials in Detroit to discuss how Muslims can give money to charities without having their donations go to suspected terrorist groups or have those donations provoke scrutiny from the government.
U.S. Attorney Jeffrey G. Collins, who meets monthly with Arab-American leaders, has agreed to address the concerns while attending the dinner.
"He has shown a willingness to work with us and understand our concerns," Hamad said.
Local Islamic charities hope Muslims feel confident enough to continue giving to their organizations, most of which depend on Ramadan for the bulk of their individual donations.
It's the biggest time of year for Life for Relief and Development, a Southfield-based group that provides humanitarian and emergency relief in Muslim countries. Typically, the organization receives $2 million during this time of year, but President Khalil Jassemm said he doesn't expect to get more than half of that amount.
"It is a very uncertain time for the Muslim community," Jassemm said. "Muslims are on the spot all the time. People are very much concerned."
People understand there is a need, he said.
"The problem with some of them is when they give the money to any charity, the concern is what the government will do," Jassemm said. "It's a very tough time. You have to assure your donors that you are OK."
To assure its supporters, Mercy USA for Aid and Development, a Plymouth-based humanitarian organization founded by American Muslims, put a message prominently on its Web site that it gets grants from the U.S. government, the United Nations and other organizations.
Umar al-Qadi, the group's president and chief executive, said his organization is not worried about a dip in donations this year. It just wants to ease contributor's concerns.
"We just want to point out to them we're distinct and we're different," al-Qadi said.