The son of a Hamas strongman, who had provided Israel's security establishment with valuable inside information for almost a decade, will not be deported from the United States, a California court ruled on Wednesday.
The U.S. Department of Homeland of Security ruled more than a year ago that Mosab Hassan Yousef should be denied asylum because he has "engaged in terrorist activity" and is a "danger to the security of the United States."
However, on Wednesday Homeland Security officials indicated they were prepared to grant Yousef asylum, thus retracting their original intention, after claiming to have received new information which shed new light on the case.
The pro-Israel think-tank EMET, who had aided Yusef in his attempts to be granted asylum, said in a statement following Wednesday's ruling that they were "enormously grateful to all those who played a part in standing with Mosab during this time, and helping the Department of Homeland Security come to understand what a grave error deporting Mosab would have been."
The 32-year-old son of one of Hamas' founders, whose story was first exposed by Haaretz earlier in the year, argued before Judge Rico Bartolomei at the San Diego court that he will be killed if he is deported because he spied on the militant group for the Shin Bet security's intelligence agency for a decade and abandoned Islam for Christianity.
"For 10 years, he fought terrorism in secret, hiding what he was doing and who he was," his attorney, Steven Seick, wrote in a court filing. "He deserves a safe place away from violence and fear."
Yousef has rallied support from members of Congress and others. Former CIA Director James Woolsey calls him a "remarkable young man" who should be commended for "extraordinary heroism and courage."
Israel has not commented on Yousef's claims, though members of the Knesset Foreign Affairs and Defense Committee wrote him this month to thank him and recognize his work for Shin Bet.
His attorney said Shin Bet will not have a representative address the immigration judge, but the now-retired officer who recruited and supervised him, Gonen Ben-Itzhak, is expected to testify. "G", as he was known, came out from deep cover to aid Yousef in his fight against the deportation order.
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