Salah Sarsour, the president of the Islamic Society of Milwaukee, returned home after a federal judge ordered his release from an ICE detention facility, where he had been held for about three months.
Hundreds gathered at the Islamic Society of Milwaukee Thursday for an emotional welcome home celebration.
"Because of people like you, and people of freedom that stood with justice, that's why I'm back. I owe this to my community," Sarsour said.
Watch: Salah Sarsour speaks to the community following his release
A federal judge ordered Sarsour's release early Thursday morning. He had been detained after the Department of Homeland Security accused him of lying on his 1998 green card application. In the ruling, the judge noted Sarsour has lived in the U.S. legally for more than three decades.
"I am back to serve my community who I am so proud of," Sarsour said.
Ahead of the reunion, TMJ4 spoke with Sarsour's daughter and daughter-in-law.
"Every day we felt every hour of the day for the last two and a half months. Today, I'm like, 'Was this a dream?'" Seema Oweisi, his daughter-in-law, said.
Now that he is home, his daughter can introduce him to his new grandson, who was born while Sarsour was in ICE custody.
"It was very hard. I don't wish it for anyone," Sundos Sarsour said. "I had a C-section, and he was always the support to stand next to me through something like this."
The family is focused on getting Sarsour healthy, saying he lost 30 pounds while in custody.
The Department of Homeland Security issued a statement responding to his release:
"There is no First Amendment right to fund terror organizations and lie on immigration forms. Any accusation of discrimination by ICE agents is FALSE. Sarsour is a terrorist who was convicted of throwing Molotov cocktails at the homes of Israeli armed forces. He is also an illegal alien that lied on his green card application to fraudulently gain legal status in the U.S. under the Clinton Administration," a DHS spokesperson said.
Sarsour denies those allegations. His legal team says he still faces more legal battles ahead, but his family says this first step is a relief.
"Obviously the case isn't over, and anything could happen, but at the same time I think we're all just so relieved that he's coming to his house and he's gonna be sleeping in his bed and being around his family and the community, like the community means a lot, a lot to him," Oweisi said.
Sarsour's legal team said they will be holding a press conference Friday afternoon to answer more questions.
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