ALBANY — Supporters of former local imam Yassin Aref and store owner Mohammed Hossain will gather later today to mark the fourth anniversary of their arrests by the FBI on charges of supporting terrorism.

Supporters of former local imam Yassin Aref and store owner Mohammed Hossain gathered for a march and vigil Friday to mark the fourth anniversary of their arrests by the FBI on charges of supporting terrorism.
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Several peace and justice groups from the Capital Region will come out in support of the Muslim Solidarity Committee's efforts to remember the two men.

Aref and Hossain are each serving 15-year sentences in federal prison after being convicted in 2006 on terrorism-related charges resulting from an FBI sting operation. A federal court rejected their appeals in July.

A march will be begin at 4:30 p.m. today at the Masjid-As Salam Mosque, 278 Central Ave., ending with a vigil at the Washington Avenue Armory.

The purpose of the event is to show the two men are not forgotten, to witness to the solidarity among the diverse groups working for peace and justice and to protest a politicized Justice Department and FBI, said organizers.

A forum on the Muslim Innocence Project will be held from 1 to 3 p.m. Saturday in the Matthew Bender Room at Albany Law School on New Scotland Avenue. The forum will bring together lawyers and supporters from various Muslim terrorism cases around the country who will examine similarities among post-9/11 cases.

Defense and human rights attorney Lynne Stewart is expected to speak about representing Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman, the Egyptian religious leader convicted of instigating the 1993 World Trade Center bombing. Stewart was later arrested and convicted in 2005 of helping Raham communicate with his followers. She remains free on bail pending an appeal.