Feds Move to Seize Iranian Mosques and 36-Story Skyscraper

US News | Thu, Nov 12, 2009 at 2:27:37 pm PST

The Obama administration is making more than symbolic moves to pressure Iran, as federal prosecutors file complaints to seize 4 mosques and a New York skyscraper owned by an Iranian front group.

NEW YORK (AP) — Federal prosecutors Thursday took steps to seize four U.S. mosques and a Fifth Avenue skyscraper owned by a nonprofit Muslim organization long suspected of being secretly controlled by the Iranian government.

In what could prove to be one of the biggest counterterrorism seizures in U.S. history, prosecutors filed a civil complaint in federal court seeking the forfeiture of more than $500 million in assets of the Alavi Foundation and an alleged front company.

The assets include Islamic centers in New York City, Maryland, California and Houston, more than 100 acres in Virginia, and a 36-story office tower in New York.

(Hat tip: KT.)