US

NYPD Surveilled Over 250 Mosques and Muslim Groups in NYC in Decade Following 9/11

NYPD Collected Intelligence of Hundreds of Mosques and Muslim Groups in NYC in the Decade Following 9/11The New York Police Department collected intelligence on more than 250 mosques and Muslim student groups in and around New York, often using undercover officers and informants to canvas the Islamic population of America’s largest city, according to officials and confidential, internal documents obtained by The Associated Press.

The documents, many marked “secret,” highlight the NYPD’s hunt for terrorists among groups of largely innocent people living their everyday lives in the frantic decade following the murder of close to 3,000 Americans by extremists on September 11, 2001.

An Associated Press investigation last month revealed that a secret squad known as the Demographics Unit sent teams of undercover officers to help key tabs on the area’s Muslim communities. The recent documents are the first to quantify that effort.

Since the 2001 attacks, the police department has built one of the nation’s most aggressive domestic intelligence agencies, one that operates far outside the city limits and maintains a list of “ancestries of interest” that it uses to focus its clandestine efforts. That effort has benefited from federal money and an unusually close relationship with the CIA, one that at times blurred the lines between domestic and foreign intelligence-gathering.

After identifying more than 250 area mosques, police officials determined the “ethnic orientation, leadership and group affiliations,” according to the 2006 police documents. Police also used informants and teams of plainclothes officers, known as rakers, to identify mosques requiring further scrutiny, according to an official involved in that effort, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss the program.

Armed with that information, police then identified 53 “mosques of concern” and placed undercover officers and informants there, the documents show.

Many of those mosques were flagged for allegations of criminal activity, such as alien smuggling, financing Hamas or money laundering. Others were identified for having ties to Salafism, a hardline movement preaching a strict version of Islamic law. Still others were identified for what the documents refer to as “rhetoric.”

Other reasons are less clear.

Two mosques, for instance, were flagged for having ties to Al-Azhar, the 1,000-year-old Egyptian mosque that is the pre-eminent institute of Islamic learning in the Sunni Muslim world. Al-Azhar was one of the first religious institutions to condemn the 2001 terrorist attacks. President George W. Bush’s close adviser, Karen Hughes, visited Al-Azhar in 2005 and applauded its courage.

Al-Azhar was also a sponsor of President Barack Obama’s 2009 speech reaching out to the Muslim world.

The list of mosques where undercover agents or informants operated includes ones that Police Commissioner Ray Kelly has visited and that area officials have mentioned as part of the region’s strong ties to the Muslim community. Mayor Michael Bloomberg has stood beside leaders of some mosques on the list as allies in fighting terrorism.

The documents are a series of internal presentations, including one prepared for Kelly. Following the AP’s reporting, they were provided to the AP and veteran New York police reporter Leonard Levitt, who runs the website NYPDConfidential.com. Because the list of mosques is so long and explanation for the surveillance is so limited, the AP is not identifying the individual mosques that were under surveillance.

An NYPD spokesman and spokeswoman did not immediately return messages seeking comment Monday, a holiday. The police department has said it follows leads and does not trawl entire neighborhoods.

New York Police identified 263 “hot spots” throughout the city, the documents show. Like the mosques, the examples of hot spots ranged from businesses that sold untaxed cigarettes and where inflammatory rhetoric was overheard to those with less obvious criminal connections.

At one Bangladeshi restaurant, for instance, police identified a “devout crowd” from a nearby mosque — which was not among the listed mosques of concern. The restaurant’s list of “alleged activities” also included being a “popular meeting location for political activities.”

It is another example undercutting Bloomberg’s claim that the NYPD does not take religion into account in its policing. Last week the AP revealed that the NYPD maintained a list of “ancestries of interest” that included “American Black Muslim,” which is a religion, not an ancestry.

Police also kept tabs on seven of the area’s Muslim student associations, defined in the documents as “a university-based student group, with an Islamic focus, involved with religious and political activities.” Two were flagged for having Salafi speakers. One was cited for having students who are “politically active and are radicalizing.”

The documents appear at times at odds with the White House’s newly released policy on combatting violent extremism. That document discourages authorities from casting suspicion on communities or conflating strong religious views with violent extremism. The White House has declined to comment on the NYPD’s clandestine programs but has applauded its counterterrorism efforts.

Since the AP reports, several Muslim civil rights groups and a New York congresswoman have urged the Justice Department to investigate the NYPD for what critics see as racial profiling. Under Attorney General Eric Holder, the Justice Department has stepped up investigations of local police departments for possible civil rights violations, but none involves national security cases.

The Associated Press contributed to this article.

Comments (54)

1 2
  • tom
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 11:05pm

    Not under Bloomerburg will this be necessary, he’s building one at ground zero!

    Report Post » tom  
    • Secret Squirrel
      Posted on September 7, 2011 at 9:13am

      .
      “The New York Police Department collected intelligence on more than 250 mosques and Muslim student groups in and around New York,”
      That’s a good strart!

      Report Post » Secret Squirrel  
  • orlandojon
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:34pm

    The last thing needed in NYC is 250 Mosques…I had no idea it was that bad. No wonder New Yorkers are moving in record numbers

    Report Post »  
  • zoro51
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:33pm

    one mosque is tyoo many all these CULT MURDERERS strapping boms to one another KILLING in the name of their FALSE GOD ALLAH n FALSE PROPHET MUHAMMY sleeper terrorist cells.. THNE you hear of these dress wearing towel heads gona march n make noise during the silent spot on 9011 memorial event . they are NOT worth the investment nor effort DEPORT THEM ALL like i siad one mosque is too many NY needs a MAYOR n a GOV wiht BRASS BALLS to do whats right n whats needed to rid NYC of TRASH

    Report Post » zoro51  
  • Alan
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:21pm

    250 doesn’t sound like enough

    Report Post »  
    • Rightsofman
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:23pm

      Are they saying that this was a bad thing? If so in what way?

      Report Post »  
  • NuffSaid
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:19pm

    Here’s an idea for a change to the 911 memorial:

    On one side of the plaza, erect a 50-foot statute of a Marine Sniper and Spotter. They are drawing down (aiming) a rifle across the plaza. Cast this statue in bronze.

    On the other side, in the direction of the nearest Mosque, place a 30-foot high sculpture of a Muslim strapping a suicide bomb-vest on a ten year old boy. Cast this sculpture in a mixture of concrete and pig dung.

    Add statues of 2996 New Yorkers in the space between the Victim and the human filth, so that the New Yorkers appear to be breathless awaiting the shot.

    They 911 victims will remain breathlessly awaiting vengence for eternity because New York City will never “take the shot.”

    Put a public latrine in the Muslim sculpture.

    The muz scored a great victory over humanity in New York City on 9/11. This memorial should be dedicated to NYC shame and dishonor. The Muslims took out the towers and simultaneously castrated the Wall Street Bull.

    Report Post »  
  • SodamYat
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:18pm

    Good, keep it up!

    Report Post » SodamYat  
  • tharpdevenport
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:12pm

    Thank you, NYPD.

    Report Post » tharpdevenport  
  • flfshrmn
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:08pm

    And armed with all of this information the Dept of Justice, Eric Holder and JNapolitano have reached the conclusion in a 2009 DHS report on “Rightwing Extremism,” The underlying messages of this video report are incredible. “Blacks are encouraged to report to the Department of Homeland Security any suspicious activities of whites. Whites are predominantly purveyors of terrorism in America. Terrorism is not connected to any religion or race, except whites.”
    The DHS report continues while noting, “There is no single profile of a would-be terrorist, we therefore don’t have the luxury of focusing our efforts on any particular group,” the videos focus on white males, along with a few females, in the role of terrorist. The flyer was reminiscent of the Department of Homeland Security’s 2009 report “Right-wing Extremism: Current Economic and Political Climate Fueling Resurgence in Radicalization and Recruitment“ that suggested ”the return of military veterans facing significant challenges reintegrating into their communities could lead to the potential emergence of terrorist groups.”
    It is aparent to me that this administration and the DHS’s main concern and focal point for terrorism these days is the patriotic Christian American citizen and the Tea Party!
    The Tea Party is virbally attacked by the Demunists and assisted by the media dialy.
    You just cant make this stuff up!

    Report Post » flfshrmn  
    • drought1800
      Posted on September 7, 2011 at 7:39am

      it is what it is , as sharp as that may sound ,divine providence continues to loom very large, same as always.

      Report Post »  
  • MODEL82A1
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:00pm

    CURRENTSHEEP, save your Straw Man arguements for your idiot Liberal pals who fall for them. Mine was a simple statement of fact. Care to refute it?

    Report Post » MODEL82A1  
    • Exrepublisheep
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:11pm

      A) You didn’t state any facts to refute. B) I‘m glad the floods didn’t wash you out of your moms basement, you’re entertaining!

      Report Post » Exrepublisheep  
    • MODEL82A1
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:17pm

      I repeat: There is no way Holder will go after a Bloomberg (a billionaIre Democrat) operation.
      Care to refute? Didn’t think so.

      Report Post » MODEL82A1  
    • Exrepublisheep
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:26pm

      Go after Bloomberg for what? Watching our enemies? Defending Americans? Ask your dad to get off your back for a moment so you can figure out the truth.

      Report Post » Exrepublisheep  
  • NuffSaid
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:59pm

    I’d rather have seen this Headline

    “NYPD Stomps the **** out of Muslims for the Last Ten Years
    Score after Ten years–
    Muslims: 2996 innocent New Yorkers Dead
    NYPD: 2997 innocent Muslims Stomped.”

    Maybe that wouldn’t be justice but it would have been some kind of equity. But remember that police do not deliver justice. Think of the police force as a politician’s *****. He or she can screw any of the people any of the time and never get their hands dirty, never be accused of paternity can contract no social diseases.

    So, g-head PD, keep up that surveillance. If you get really mad, maybe you could increase surveillance to “taking a hard look.” I know a lot of New Yorkers will sleep easier tonight knowing the NY’s finest have, “their eyes peeled.”

    Oh by the way, detective, while you were surveilling the Mosques, the Muslims were PREVAILING in building more mosques.

    So how do we get justice? It won’t be from a cop. I have a feeling that justice will come from the people taking stomping into their own strategies after they’ve been *****-ed enough.

    This coming September 11, could someone please take a leak for me on the 911 memorial? I‘d be proud to stand in Mayor Bloomberg’s footprints.

    Report Post »  
    • Ookspay
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:26pm

      Now THAT blew my mind.

      Report Post » Ookspay  
    • flfshrmn
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:27pm

      Thats just the reality of our country at this moment in time. If you and the Muslims find America so dreadful maybe you could be on one of the next flights out of JFK and return to a “happier” and free Muslim country where you can spout your discontent without getting you head cut off or your tongue cut out. You know, the Muslim country where the citizens are not repressed by dictators and all religions walk the streets openly and freely with no animosity towards the other. Also, if you would please stand close enough to your Mayor Bloomberg so I could happily and proudly acknowlege the 911 memorial, and pi$$ on the both of you for your disrespect to America and the American way of life………that would be rewarding!

      Report Post » flfshrmn  
    • flfshrmn
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:31pm

      flfshrmn to NUFFSAIHD
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:27pm
      Thats just the reality of our country at this moment in time. If you and the Muslims find America so dreadful maybe you could be on one of the next flights out of JFK and return to a “happier” and free Muslim country where you can spout your discontent without getting you head cut off or your tongue cut out. You know, the Muslim country where the citizens are not repressed by dictators and all religions walk the streets openly and freely with no animosity towards the other. Also, if you would please stand close enough to your Mayor Bloomberg so I could happily and proudly acknowlege the 911 memorial, and pi$$ on the both of you for your disrespect to America and the American way of life………that would be rewarding!

      Report Post » flfshrmn  
  • sillyfreshness
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:54pm

    I think the only real way to honor those killed by radical Islamic fundamentalists is to have our government help erect a giant Mosque at or near ground zero. Talk about irony.

    Report Post » sillyfreshness  
  • The Divided States of America
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:53pm

    Oh there is more than students who are “politically active and are radicalizing.” The 72 virgin promise goes along way with these aholes.

    Report Post » The Divided States of America  
  • Nobar
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:47pm

    The bomb will come through the border to their hands. Pay attention to these mosques, they may try to house it.

    Report Post » Nobar  
  • JCoolman
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:45pm

    Good.

    Report Post »  
  • conservative_teacher
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:44pm

    Ron Paul will end this unconstitutional nonsense.

    Report Post » conservative_teacher  
    • MODEL82A1
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:56pm

      Wanna bet? Say, a year’s pay?

      Report Post » MODEL82A1  
    • 82dAirborne
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:57pm

      As a retired senator? How’s that? He needs to have a place in the next administration in some role dealing with finances/monetary policies. If he is ever anywhere near Foreign Policy we are doomed.

      Report Post » 82dAirborne  
  • AB5r
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:42pm

    What did that cost? How much money was spent on that, and how many other crimes were not investigated due to the time being spent on this? If we allow Islam to continue to spread in America, it will destroy us if for no other reason than we will spend so much time having to monitor Muslims looking for so-called extremists, but in reality just looking for any Muslim ready to engage in a holy act of jihad in the example of Muhammad and per the dictates of the Koran. We are insane to be allowing Islam in America. This only started in the 60s, it hasn’t even been 50 years of the spread of Islam and already we are suffering massively due to it. We must stop allowing Islam in America or it will eventually destroy America, even if it does not destroy it literally for many centuries, it will destroy the economy and most assuredly the quality of life, and of course freedom of speech will be gone.

    Report Post » AB5r  
  • MODEL82A1
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:42pm

    There is no way Holder will go after a Bloomberg (a billionaIre Democrat) operation.

    Report Post » MODEL82A1  
    • Exrepublisheep
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:50pm

      Did you forget the right hates mooooslim? Are you just a reactionary that whatever the blaze may dislike you become someone who hates it too? Wathching mosques is an AMERICAN thing to do. They foment hatred so we try to catch them in the act. To complain about that is Anti American and cowardly to boot.

      Report Post » Exrepublisheep  
    • TheGreyPiper
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:09pm

      Haha, look at the lameass troll. GTFO and go slobber up Arianna’s stinky snatch.

      Report Post » TheGreyPiper  
    • MODEL82A1
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:14pm

      Come on CURRENTSHEEP, you and your ilk are FURIOUS at this kind of racial profiling. You must start a petition demanding that the Justice Department file suite against the NYPD. Have the courage of your convictions. I dare you. (Waiting for Liberal courage. Gonna be a LONG wait.)

      Report Post » MODEL82A1  
  • 82dAirborne
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:34pm

    Good. Very good.

    Report Post » 82dAirborne  
  • Ron_WA
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:30pm

    From a purely Bill of Rights standpoint this makes me slightly uneasy but from the bigger National Security standpoint this is a necessary evil just as the FBI’s monitoring of fundamentalist churches & any other known or suspected (by way of probable cause) radical organizations.

    Report Post » Ron_WA  
    • AB5r
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 10:32pm

      From a purely Bill of Rights standpoint it is Islam that should bother you as the core traditional basic written texts of Islam REJECT AND DO NOT ALLOW THE SO-CALLED BILL OF RIGHTS! The whole PURPOSE OF ISLAM, as it was created, as it was implemented, as it IS, is to ELIMINATE the so-called Bill of Rights and the so-called Constitution! And your comparison to other “fundamentalists” makes you sound clueless, like you don’t have the first clue what Islam is. A fundamentalist Jain, who practices Jainism, avoids stepping on bugs – ooooh that is a real threat to you! A fundamentalist Christian would pray for you, ooooh that is a real threat to you! Fundamentalism is not the problem, Islam is.

      Report Post » AB5r  
  • mossbrain
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:21pm

    I’ve heard many many people say, there is no need to try to separate the good from the bad Muslims, it is an impossible task. All of them must be slaughtered, all of them must be slaughtered.

    Report Post » mossbrain  
    • AB5r
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:46pm

      While it is absolutely true that it is impossible to tell the true muslim from the muslim in name only, the true muslim being the “good” muslim, but the good muslim being bad for us, there is no need to kill them, we only need to separate them from us. As long as we don’t have Islam in America we can manage the threat much easier, any Muslims traveling here can be more easily monitored. It is the settling in of millions of Muslims that makes our security problem one that cannot be solved without destroying our own economy and quality of life. Let the Muslims live, in countries they have already subjugated and destroyed, not in America or the West. Only those proven to be planning jihad attacks need to be killed, but they should be killed, not prosecuted in court.

      Report Post » AB5r  
  • GIDEON612
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:17pm

    There is a good job plan. Get the demolition workers on the task of taking them down.

    Report Post » GIDEON612  
    • AB5r
      Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:51pm

      Either that or convert them into BBQ joints, strip clubs, night clubs, etc. No sense wasting perfectly good space. They could even be made into community centers or all sorts of other things. If necessary our government should just buy them out and evict them. Keep it fair, but get the Islam out of America. Just let them know, look, we respect your religion but it is incompatible with our Constitution and freedoms of speech and religion. So, we just need to separate, amicably.

      Report Post » AB5r  
  • Ookspay
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:16pm

    I wonder how many churches they staked out, profiling muslims only? GREAT WORK! Keep it up they still hate us:

    “Slay the unbelievers wherever you find them.” Qur’an 2:191
    “Make war on the infidels living in your neighborhood.” Qur’an 9:123
    “Any religion other than Islam is not acceptable.” Qur’an 3:85
    “Maim and crucify the infidels if they criticize Islam” Qur’an 5:33
    “Do not hanker for peace with the infidels; behead them when you catch them.” Qur’an 47:4
    “Muslims must not take the infidels as friends.” Qur’an 3:28

    The religion of pieces…

    Report Post » Ookspay  
  • shirelover
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:16pm

    one of my favorite quotes “In God we trust, all others we verify” if you belong to a religeon, race or whatever that has proven by it’s actions that it wants to destroy our government, we have a right to monitor you. That is all they are doing, monitoring. if you want to monitor me, come on, please, come to church with me! We’d love to have you! you will meet someone who will rock your world!

    Report Post » shirelover  
  • Obama Bin Lying
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:06pm

    250 Mosques???

    Thats it?

    Report Post » Obama Bin Lying  
  • 13th Imam
    Posted on September 6, 2011 at 9:04pm

    Keep your friends close

    Keep your enemies closer

    Report Post » 13th Imam  
1 2

Sign In To Post Comments! Sign In

Sign Up For Our Newsletter!

Glenn Beck Radio

Listen to Glenn Beck 24/7 Listen Now
Restoring Love