An Iowa legislator who heads the American Muslim Alliance is assuring Des Moines Jewish leaders the organization wants peace for Israel and will focus on human rights after controversy developed over the group's plans to move to Iowa.

"The American Muslim Alliance is not anti-Jewish; it is not anti-Israel," said state Rep. Ako Abdul-Samad, D-Des Moines, who chairs the organization. "We look at the Palestinian and Israeli conflict, and we would love for it to end peacefully."

Abdul-Samad said that the alliance, which was established in 1994, will move its headquarters to Des Moines in 2018, and that he plans to hold its national conference here next spring or summer. The organization's website says it has 98 chapters in 31 states, but Abdul-Samad said that the alliance has been inactive in recent years and that he is leading a rebuilding initiative.

The nonpartisan American Muslim Alliance, which has had offices in California and Washington, D.C., has been involved in controversy in the past. In 2000, then-U.S. Senate candidate Hillary Clinton returned $50,000 in donations from the alliance after political scientist Agha Saaed, the organization's founder, was quoted as defending the use of armed force by Palestinians against Israel. Other members of the alliance have been accused of making anti-Semitic remarks in the past, according to the New York Times.

Abdul-Samad confirmed to the Des Moines Register that he met with representatives of Des Moines Jewish community about two months ago after news organizations reported he had become head of the American Muslim Alliance. In mid-September, he provided Jewish leaders with a statement regarding his position on the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and his plans for the American Muslim Alliance.

“Despite their political differences, the Palestinians and Israel will have to resolve their differences peacefully in a way that will recognize both a Jewish homeland in which others are provided democratic rights and on the other hand an independent Palestinian homeland," Abdul-Samad wrote.

He added, "It is not the intention of AMA to advocate for or to support efforts to destroy Israel and I myself am not anti-Israel."

"Under my leadership AMA will focus on civil and human rights issues of concern to both the Jewish and Muslim communities," Abdul-Samad's statement said.

'A very positive conversation'

Mark Finkelstein, community relations director for the Jewish Federation of Greater Des Moines, participated in the meeting. He said the discussion, held at the office of the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa in Des Moines, was "very positive."

"He was very cordial and responded to our concerns," Finkelstein said.

Connie Ryan, executive director of the Interfaith Alliance of Iowa, hosted the meeting among Abdul-Samad, Finkelstein and one other Jewish community member whom she declined to identify. It was conducted respectfully by everyone who was involved, she said.

“It was a very positive conversation. You know, I think everyone left there being very hopeful of the direction that it was taking," Ryan said.

Abdul-Samad, 66, is a Des Moines native who has been an imam, or worship leader, at a local mosque. He is also the founder and chief executive of Creative Visions Human Development Institute, a nonprofit anti-poverty agency established in 1996. He has been a member of the Iowa House since 1997 and was previously a member of the Des Moines School Board.

Abdul-Samad said in an interview he is aware that some members of the American Muslim Alliance have made statements previously that have been criticized as being anti-Israel or anti-Semitic. But he believes their remarks were taken out of context.

In 2000, AMA founder Saeed told the New York Times "he had spoken publicly about armed resistance by the Palestinians, but he said it was always in the context of a United Nations resolution that he said gave the Palestinians the right to resist oppression by all means." He also said he has always made it clear he supported a peaceful settlement in the Middle East.

Abdul-Samad said he has been involved with the American Muslim Alliance off and on since about late 2008, and he was asked to become chair in 2015. However, he said, he didn't talk publicly about his leadership role with the group until this year, when he announced his intention to move the national office to Des Moines and to hold a national AMA conference here that is still in the planning stages.

Records with the Iowa Secretary of State's office show Abdul-Samad filed documents on June 1, 2017, to establish the American Muslim Alliance of Iowa Inc. as a nonprofit organization. He is the only officer listed, and he said his intention is that Iowa will lead the group nationally.

One of his goals, Abdul-Samad said, is to shift the American Muslim Alliance in a new direction.

"We are supporting and furthering better relationships with individuals to be able to help fight for those who feel disenfranchised, you know, those who feel disconnected with the system and dealing with racism and prejudice," Abdul-Samad said.

He said one of his goals is to encourage Muslim participation at all levels of U.S. politics. This will include Iowa's first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses, which are expected to have a role in selecting major party candidates for 2020 campaign.

The move to Des Moines has been met with skepticism and criticism from some.

Stephen Kirby, a retired Los Angeles police detective and an author of five books about Islam, wrote an article in June entitled, "Ako Abdul-Samad And The American Muslim Alliance - Jihad Comes To Des Moines." It appeared in MilitantIslamMonitor.org, where another article about the AMA was published in August.

In September, Kirby wrote another piece for the website Jihad Watch in which he warned that the American Muslim Alliance had supported convicted terrorists who hate Jews and want to destroy Israel. He said the entire Iowa Legislature has been made aware of the national group's headquarters relocating to Des Moines

"Imagine, if you will, that an organization with the same history as the AMA was coming to be headquartered in Des Moines and hold its national conference there in 2018, but it had a name along the lines of the 'American Neo-Nazi Alliance,'" Kirby wrote. "Can you imagine there would be such indifference by most of the major Iowa media and the state legislature? Can you imagine the Des Moines Jewish community would be so divided and silent?"

Abdul-Samad said he didn't want to debate Kirby, who now lives in the Des Moines area, but the lawmaker said his goal is unifying communities and encouraging Americans to work together to solve issues. He also said he doesn't support implementing Sharia Law, a religious law that forms Islamic tradition, to replace the American legal system.

"We are not looking for the negative in individuals. We are looking for individuals who want to work for the positive and make not only Iowa, but this country, a better place," Abdul-Samad said.

Lawmakers jump to defense of both sides

Kirby's writings sparked a flurry of emails in August between several Iowa legislators who had been contacted about the American Muslim Alliance moving to Des Moines. The Des Moines Register obtained copies of the emails.

The legislators who commented via email included Rep. Art Staed, D-Cedar Rapids, who described Kirby's views as "extremist propaganda from a bigoted man with Islamophobia." But Sen. Jason Schultz, R-Schleswig, emailed Kirby to thank him for his "calm and measured response " to critics. He remarked, "You have always been a respectful and classy individual as you work to bring light to the issues facing Iowa and our country."

Staed said in an interview that he regretted responding to Kirby's writings because it only spurred additional support among legislators for someone he believes has been demonizing Muslims. He added he was shocked by implications that Abdul-Samad could be linked in any way to terrorism, calling him "one of the most peaceful, eloquent individuals in our Legislature who cares about people."

Schultz defends Kirby, describing him as a scholar who has done his research and understands the Quran, the sacred text of Islam. A University of Virginia spokesman confirmed that Kirby received a doctorate there in foreign affairs in 1993.

Schultz said that he has always known Abdul-Samad to be a gentleman who is respectful and polite, and that he doesn't believe moving that American Muslim Alliance to Des Moines represents a physical threat to Iowans.

"But I think all of America should be concerned it is moving to Des Moines in order to take a greater place in American politics," particularly Iowa's presidential caucuses, he added. "The agenda is the spread of Islam in America, and I believe that is dangerous and unhealthy for America."

Miriam Amer, executive director of the Iowa chapter of the American Council on Islamic Relations, rebuked Kirby's remarks, accusing him of "selling fear" and making unsubstantiated arguments that defame Muslims. She said Abdul-Samad is a founding member of CAIR's Iowa chapter, and described him as a dedicated public servant whose Creative Visions organization helps to feed hundreds of poor Iowans.

"His heart is huge, and his outlook on life is to help as many people as possible," Amer said.

Iowa has about 80,000 Muslims, Amer said, a population that has been increasing steadily. She added, "I don't know any Muslims who support terrorism. For us, we are the victims of terrorism around the world."