A Dallas Muslim community leader will be deported after an immigration judge ruled he provided “material support” to the Holy Land Foundation, the Richardson-based charity whose leaders were convicted in a major terrorism financing case.
Marwan Marouf, 54, a Jordanian national who has lived in the United States for roughly 30 years, has served as the public relations and fundraising director for the Muslim-American Society’s DFW chapter. He has been held in U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody since September.
The Dallas Express previously reported that ICE arrested Marouf in September and charged him with lacking a valid entry document, soliciting funds for a Tier III undesignated terrorist organization, and providing “material support” to terrorism.
Marouf was initially charged with overstaying his visa. In recent weeks, the Department of Homeland Security filed additional allegations accusing him of soliciting funds for a terrorist organization, according to KERA.
During a hearing last Thursday, Immigration Judge Abdias E. Tida denied Marouf’s request for voluntary departure, citing donations he allegedly made to the Holy Land Foundation. Attorneys argued he should be granted post-conclusion voluntary departure to address an urgent cardiac condition — Brugada syndrome — before leaving the country. Tida rejected the request.
“Even if the respondent were statutorily eligible, the court finds that he does not merit discretion … considering the gravity of the evidence in the record,” Tida said, according to KERA.
Marouf’s attorneys said they will not appeal due to the urgency of his medical condition. DHS told the court he will be deported to Jordan within two weeks.
Holy Land Foundation Background
According to reporting attributed to Fox News in a social media post, Marouf allegedly made financial contributions to the Holy Land Foundation. Federal prosecutors previously identified the organization as part of a U.S.-based support network for Hamas, a designated foreign terrorist organization. The charity was shut down in 2001, and several of its leaders were convicted in 2008 for funneling money to Hamas.
Under federal immigration law, individuals found to have provided material support to designated terrorist groups are generally barred from immigration relief.
Texas Context: State Scrutiny of Islamist-Linked Organizations
The deportation ruling comes as Texas officials have intensified scrutiny of organizations connected—directly or indirectly—to the Holy Land Foundation case.
Gov. Greg Abbott recently designated the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and the Muslim Brotherhood as foreign terrorist and transnational criminal organizations under state law, as reported by The Dallas Express. The designation bars both groups from purchasing land in Texas and authorizes Attorney General Ken Paxton to pursue enforcement actions.
Abbott’s proclamation cited evidence introduced during the Holy Land Foundation prosecution, including documents and internal records linking CAIR to the Muslim Brotherhood’s U.S. network.
State Board of Education member Brandon Hall also raised concerns about CAIR’s involvement in curriculum discussions following the governor’s designation. Hall questioned why representatives of a terrorist-designated organization were participating in public comment sessions on state curriculum, a moment reported by The Dallas Express.
The Marouf ruling adds a new development to ongoing statewide discussions about the influence, operations, and legal exposure of groups previously connected to Hamas or the broader network identified in the Holy Land Foundation case.
Groups Supporting the Terrorist-Designated Organization Promote Counter-Narrative
Groups supporting the terrorist-designated organization, including the Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA), have circulated materials portraying Marouf as a community victim rather than someone found by a federal judge to have provided material support to the Holy Land Foundation.
A reposted Salon article includes emotional testimonials and claims the government’s allegations are politically motivated. These assertions contradict the findings of the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration Judge Abdias Tida, and The Dallas Express has not independently verified them.
Next Steps
ICE will oversee Marouf’s deportation to Jordan.