Biography
Kifah Jayyousi, a co-defendant with Jose Padilla and Adham Hassoun, was a mechanical engineer who ran an organization called American Worldwide Relief, which provided relief supplies to Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Chechnya. He was accused of providing money, equipment, and material support to terrorists, though these claims were not substantiated with evidence. He also published a newsletter called the “Islam Report” that allegedly encouraged readers to raise money for Islamic causes.
Case characteristics: FBI confidential informant, cooperated with prosecutors. Organization referenced in charging documents: Al Qaeda.
Case data and description from The Intercept's Trial and Terror project (Trevor Aaronson and Margot Williams), licensed CC BY-NC. Source: https://github.com/theintercept/trial-and-terror-data
A November 2019 Center for Constitutional Rights update reproduced in NYC ABC confirms that both Kifah Jayyousi and Yassin Aref were already released from prison. It says the district court allowed Jayyousi’s challenge to Communication Management Unit records to continue because expungement remained meaningful, while finding Aref’s claim moot after his removal from the United States. This was a procedural mootness ruling, not a decision establishing the merits of either challenge or a new custody episode. Source: https://nycabc.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/updates-12-nov-2019-1.pdf#page=8
CCR’s 2010 report describes Aref v. Holder, filed in March 2010, challenging isolation and family-contact restrictions in Communications Management Units. Jayyousi is individually identified in the report’s family-photo caption before his CMU transfer. This concerns historical conditions of an existing confinement, not a new admission, release or current prison address. Center for Constitutional Rights Annual Report2010, original PDF page 34. Source: https://ccrjustice.org/files/CCR_Annual_Report_2010.pdf#page=34
Custody phases verified October 12, 2026: The government's original court filing, PDF page 12 rendered and inspected, documents March 9, 2006 bail release and April 16, 2007 return to custody. The earlier FDC Miami period is distinguished from the later sentence. The BOP memorandum filed as an exhibit, PDF page 2 inspected, links Jayyousi, his co-defendants and register 39551-039. A fresh official BOP lookup gives September 15, 2017 as the end of BOP custody. The former year-only release placeholder and unsupported continuous duration were corrected. Initial jail admission in 2005 was not guessed from the later facility arrival.
The March 29, 2010 complaint identifies Marcia G. Cooke as Jayyousi’s sentencing judge. Its individual account dates his arrival at the Terre Haute CMU to June 18, 2008, corroborated by the attached BOP transfer notice issued that day. He alleged that the transfer notice mischaracterized his conduct and that restrictions on family contact were unjustified.
