http://www.smh.com.au/national/visa-reprieve-likely-for-wife-son-as-sheikh-fights-deportation-20100328-r598.html
Visa reprieve likely for wife, son, as sheikh fights deportation JACQUELINE MALEY March 29, 2010 Sheikh Mansour Leghael at prayer. THE wife and son of Sheikh Mansour Leghaei, the Iranian Islamic preacher facing deportation on national security grounds, are likely to be allowed to stay even if he is ejected when his bridging visa expires on April 19. ''It is most likely that the immigration [department] will grant visa to my son and wife because they are not assessed to be a risk to national security,'' Dr Mansour said yesterday. ''If they have to stay, they stay, but it's not going to be easy.'' Dr Mansour has rejected as false an ASIO assessment which judged him to be a threat to national security on the grounds of ''foreign interference''. He has asked the Minister for Immigration, Chris Evans, to review the case on ''compassionate and humanitarian grounds'', citing evidence of his community work and the dislocation faced by his family. His two eldest sons are citizens, as is his daughter, Fatima, 14, who was born in Australia. ASIO is not required to disclose the information it has on Dr Mansour. He said he does not know why he would be considered a threat. ''I made it very clear to . ASIO that we have been always very open.'' Dr Mansour admits he took two payments from Iranian sources, but says he is not aligned with any group in the Iranian expatriate community, which includes monarchists, pro-democracy ''green movement'' supporters and members of the Mujahideen-e-Khalq group, who oppose the Islamic republic. Despite taking a donation from the Iranian embassy in 1999, he denied any link with Tehran and said he has no opinion on the political upheaval in Iran after last year's contested presidential election results. An Anglican priest and supporter of Dr Mansour, the Reverend Dave Smith, said he had phone calls last week from Iranian expatriates alleging the sheikh had links with Iran's government. A source told the Herald some worshippers at his prayer meetings had shouted pro-Hezbollah and pro-Ayatollah Khomeini slogans, and said he was known as the only cleric able to perform marriages recognised by Iran and so was seen as its representative. [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
