MONTREAL, Canada — A controversial Muslim cleric known as Montreal Imam who once led Montreal protests against the cartoon drawings of Muhammad wants to return to Canada after being deported three years ago.Said Jaziri is currently being held in a California detention centre for trying to sneak into the country from Mexico in the trunk of a car.
Jaziri was a high-profile preacher at a Montreal mosque and has been accused of expressing extreme views before he was deported to Tunisia in 2007 over immigration concerns.- Canadian authorities say Jaziri presented false information to get into Canada in 1997, and lied about having a criminal record in France, where he served jail time. But his lawyer, civil liberties advocate Julius Grey, says Jaziri has "never committed a serious offence."
While in Montreal, Jaziri received widespread media attention as the province grappled with religious accommodation, leading protests over the publication of Prophet Muhammad cartoons in a Danish newspaper. He called on the government to fund a $20-million mosque in Montreal.- He also advocated for Canada to allow a special court based on Sharia law, a Muslim code of faith followed by most believers.
- In an interview with the Montreal daily La Presse, Jaziri apologized to Quebecers and promised to preach a more moderate form of Islam if allowed to return.
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