Please join the people below in asking that Mohamed Khater’s letter in response to a Post Standard article about Glen Suddaby’s (the DA who prosecuted Dr. Dhafir’s case) nomination for a judgeship.

Write to, Paul Riede, Editorial Page Editor: priede@Syracuse.com with copies to, Michael Connor, Executive Editor: mconnor@syracuse.com and, Stan Linhorst, Senior Managing Editor: slinhorst@syracuse.com (Paul Riede told Mohamed 10 days ago that he would talk to the Post Standard executive editors about publishing the letter and get back to him; he hasn’t.)

Mohamed and his wife, Magda Bayoumi, are very active in the peace and justice community here in Syracuse and both attended almost all of the 17-week trial.

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Mr. Riede,

It is imperative that you publish the Op-Ed piece written by Mohamed Khater which corrects the further injustice that the Post Standard has perpetuated on Dr.Dhafir. Those of us who have followed Dr. Dhafir’s case are well aware of the facts and the lies. When I read what I know are untruths about the case, published by this paper, I question the integrity of this paper’s reporting. This Op-Ed piece sets the record straight and I feel provides a small slice of justice for Dr.Dhafir. It is your duty to inform the public on this matter.

Sincerely,

Christina Essig
Syracuse, NY
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Dear Mr. Riede:

I am a Post-Standard subscriber. I have also followed the case of Dr. Rafil Dhafir closely over the years. I urge you to publish Mohamed Khater’s letter to the Post-Standard as an Op-Ed piece, at the earliest opportunity. It is an eloquent piece and contains much that is important for your readers to read and understand. It would be a courageous and, ultimately, very fair act on your part; I hope that you will allow this letter to see the light of day.

Yours respectfully,
Fred Karpoff
Syracuse
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Subject: Please publish Mohamed Khater’s letter to the Editor as an Op-Ed piece in the Post Standard so that another perspective can be represented

Dear Paul Riede, (Editorial Page Editor at the Syracuse PostStandard)

I am writing to request that you publish Mohamed Khater’s Letter To The Editor as an Op-Ed on your editorial page. This request is made from the point of view of a citizen who is outraged at the nomination of Attorney Glenn Suddaby for a Federal Judgeship after the way that he’s persecuted Muslim members of our communities by bending the truth, entrapping them and using “sting operations” and “secret evidence” to obtain convictions.
Having Mohamed Khater’s excellent letter (which looks at the prosecution and conviction of Dr. Dhafir from the perspective of his innocence of the charges brought against him by Glenn Suddaby) in the accessible form of a citizen editorial will do much to balance your previous reporting on the case.
As a member of the Capital District community where we’ve seen the same kind of prosecution/persecution of two other Muslim men (Yassin Aref and Mohammed Musharref Hossain) by Glenn Suddaby I believe that it’s important to tell the other side of the story whenever possible and to allow your readers to think for themselves and to independently determine the worthiness of this nominee for a Federal Judgeship.
I was recently very positively impressed by your paper’s news coverage of the September 29th demonstration that took place in Syracuse against the continuation of the Iraq War. The articles and photos were excellent and I got a good impression of your standards of reporting and of serving your readership by providing wide ranging information on a variety of important topics.
With hopes that you will continue to provide such information on this very important topic of possible prosecutorial misconduct.
Mickie Lynn
Delmar NY 12054
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Dear Mr. Riede:

I am writing to urge the Syracuse Post Standard to publish, as an op ed piece, Mohamed Khater’s letter outlining the charges and facts concerning Dr. Dhafir. I write as a citizen concerned about the fear that has arisen in this country against Muslims and how we have allowed them to become victims without the civil rights of which we are so proud. I look to the press to be independent, to work thoroughly to investigate all facts, to be that fourth branch in the balance of powers to protect all people.

Sincerely,
Priscilla Fairbank
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Dear Mr. Riede,

Regrettably, miscarriages of justice are far from unknown in these
United States. Many people of integrity and good will believe, with
cause, that the trial of Dr. Rafil Dhafir was not only a miscarriage
of justice but an abuse of power. The Post Standard seems to have
taken a position which condemns Dr. Dhafir for suborning terrorism
and it seems to repeat that position quite often. I believe it is
only fair to present the opposing view as articulated by good people
such as Mohamed Khater. I am writing to ask you to publish Mr.
Khater’s letter, which was in response to your article of September
19, about tapping US attorney Glen Suddaby to be a federal judge, as
an op-ed piece.

Sincerely,
Thomas Giacobbi, LMSW
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Dear Mr. Riede,

I respectfully urge you to publish Mohamed Khater’s letter in the Syracuse Post Standard as an op-ed piece. Mohamed Khater’s letter makes many excellent points, all of which I am in complete and unequivocal agreement with. Dr. Dhafir was never convicted on charges of terrorism and it is important that this fact be made known. Please see http://www.usdoj.gov/tax/usaopress/2005/txdv05200502101440.htm which details the charges.

Dr. Dhafir is a humanitarian, pure and simple. He showed his love for his patients here by treating many of them free of charge. He showed his love for the people of Iraq by compassionate gestures which point the direction all of us would take if confronted by 500,000 deaths of children under five in our own country, caused by sanctions imposed by another.

Sincerely,

Bob Elmendorf
Secretary, Dr. Dhafir Support Committee