(COLUMBUS, OH – 10/28/2025) The Ohio chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today announced that it is a reviewing an oversight by an employee who unknowingly participated in a virtual event hosted by a Lebanese think-tank that allegedly included an British individual who may have been recently sanctioned by the Treasury Department.
Last week, the director of CAIR-Ohio’s Columbus office, Khalid Turaani, spoke in his personal capacity as a Palestinian-American activist during a virtual Zoom event about the Palestinian future in the wake of the Oct. 7th attack and the genocide in Gaza. Turaani moderated a panel at the event.
At a separate panel that Turaani did not moderate or attend, one of the dozen or so speakers was reportedly a British citizen of Palestinian origin based in Europe who the U.S. Treasury Department sanctioned in May 2025 for allegedly seeking funds for a banned foreign militant organization
In a statement, the CAIR-Ohio Board of Directors said:
“The Columbus office of the Council on American-Islamic Relations has been made aware that one of its employees recently participated in an online panel discussion organized by a think-tank based in Lebanon that may have included a sanctioned individual. The employee participated in a personal capacity and not as a representative of CAIR-Columbus. The event was not affiliated with, or authorized by, CAIR-Columbus or any other CAIR entity.
“Following a media report that a person recently added to the U.S. Treasury Department’s sanctions list also took part in the event, CAIR-Columbus immediately addressed the matter with the employee. Based on the employee’s account, he participated in a separate panel that did not include the sanctioned individual, had no interaction with the individual, and did not know about their legal status.
“CAIR-Ohio is still reviewing this matter and working to determine any appropriate next steps. CAIR-Ohio strictly upholds all laws and regulations, and opposes terrorism, ethnic cleansing, genocide and all other forms of unjust violence, whether committed by individuals, militant groups or governments.”
CAIR-Ohio’s Columbus director Khalid Turaani said in a statement last week after learning about the issue:
“When I joined a virtual program for a think-tank based in Lebanon, I never participated in any panels with the reportedly sanctioned individual, never interacted with that individual, moderated a panel with completely different individuals, and did so in my personal capacity as a Palestinian-American, not on behalf of any organization; I also did not know about the allegations against him, and I oppose all forms of violence against civilians. I apologize for my oversight, and I am fully cooperating with CAIR-Ohio as it reviews this matter.”
CAIR’s mission is to protect civil rights, enhance understanding of Islam, promote justice, and empower American Muslims.
