--- title: "Abdul El-Sayed led protest against speakers described as 'ex-terrorists'" publication: "MediaBias News" url: "https://mediabias.news/politics/abdul-el-sayed-led-protest-against-speakers-described-as-ex-terrorists" api: "https://mediabias.news/api/v1/stories/abdul-el-sayed-led-protest-against-speakers-described-as-ex-terrorists" markdown: "https://mediabias.news/politics/abdul-el-sayed-led-protest-against-speakers-described-as-ex-terrorists.md" audio: "https://mediabias.news/api/audio/abdul-el-sayed-led-protest-against-speakers-described-as-ex-terrorists" category: "Politics" area: "United States" published: "2026-09-14T23:25:12.182Z" source_reported: "2026-09-14T20:25:27.000Z" updated: "2026-09-14T23:25:12.182Z" trust_score: 50 critic_score: 65 hype_score: 41 assessment_type: "coverage-and-source-reporting-analysis" fact_check_status: "not-performed" coverage_measured: "2026-09-15T00:30:19.156342+00:00" --- # Abdul El-Sayed led protest against speakers described as 'ex-terrorists' *A 2007 University of Michigan demonstration against three men who spoke about their past involvement with militant groups has resurfaced.* **Scores for the source reporting** (0-100, assessing the original journalism this article was written from, not this write-up): - Trust 50 of 100, higher is better. Central claim attributed to a named body, but relies on anonymous sourcing for some details. - Craft 65 of 100, higher is better. Quotes from the candidate's spokesperson and affected parties are included. - Hype 41 of 100, lower is better. Headline promises more than the body delivers, with mild sensationalism. Scored by MediaBias News; method at https://mediabias.news/methodology. **The short version** - Abdul El-Sayed led a protest at the University of Michigan in 2007 against speakers described as 'ex-terrorists' who had converted to Christianity. - The speakers, Walid Shoebat, Zachariah Annani, and Kamal Saleem, had previously been involved with the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Muslim Brotherhood. - El-Sayed's campaign stated he has 'unequivocally denounced terrorism' and protested speakers spreading misinformation. - The protest and El-Sayed's leadership role in the Muslim Students Association, an organization alleged to have ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, have resurfaced. Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic Senate nominee in Michigan, led a protest in 2007 at the University of Michigan against three speakers who identified as 'ex-terrorists' and discussed their conversion to Christianity. The speakers, Walid Shoebat, Zachariah Annani, and Kamal Saleem, had previously been involved with groups including the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Muslim Brotherhood. The resurfaced event has drawn attention to El-Sayed's past leadership role in the Muslim Students Association, an organization alleged to have ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. The protest targeted an event where Shoebat, Annani, and Saleem spoke about their past involvement with militant groups before converting to Christianity. El-Sayed, who was vice president of the Muslim Students Association at the time, praised the demonstration. His campaign spokesperson, Cole Wozniak, told Fox News Digital that El-Sayed has 'unequivocally denounced terrorism' and protested against speakers spreading misinformation and fabricating their backstories. The New York Times reported in 2008 that critics questioned the backgrounds of these speakers and why they had not been arrested or deported. ## Disagreement on protest motivation Organisers of the University of Michigan event told the Michigan Daily that the gathering was intended to educate attendees about the dangers of Muslim extremism, not to promote intolerance. However, protesters wearing yellow countered that the event was unfairly 'generalizing an entire group of people'. ## What the coverage left out None of the left-rated reports ran this story. The centre-rated report and the right-rated reports did not mention the specific concerns raised by Arab-American civil rights organizations in 2008 regarding why the speakers had not been arrested or deported. ## Who covered it Shares of the 7 covering outlets with a published leaning rating: - Left: 0% (0) - Centre: 14% (1) - Right: 86% (6) 2 of 9 covering outlets carried no usable leaning rating and were excluded from those percentages. Coverage measured 2026-09-15T00:30:19.156342+00:00. **Coverage watch:** developing. Checked 6 times; 0 checks found a material change. Most recently checked 2026-09-15T00:45:11.352Z. ## How the sides framed it ### Left No separate framing summary. ### Centre - Internewscast, the centre-rated report, led with Abdul El-Sayed protesting against 'ex-terrorists' who had converted to Christianity. The report detailed El-Sayed's role in organising the 2007 demonstration at the University of Michigan against speakers Walid Shoebat, Zachariah Annani, and Kamal Saleem. It noted that the speakers had previously been involved with the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Muslim Brotherhood. The report included a quote from El-Sayed praising the protest and a statement from his campaign spokesperson, Cole Wozniak, denouncing terrorism and misinformation. Internewscast also reported on the New York Times' 2008 scrutiny of the speakers' backgrounds and mentioned the alleged ties of the Muslim Students Association to the Muslim Brotherhood. ### Right - The six right-rated reports led with Abdul El-Sayed protesting against 'ex-terrorists' who converted to Christianity. These reports highlighted El-Sayed's position as Michigan's Democratic Senate nominee and his role in the 2007 University of Michigan protest. They identified the speakers as Walid Shoebat, Zachariah Annani, and Kamal Saleem, noting their past involvement with the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Muslim Brotherhood. The right-rated reports included El-Sayed's quote about doing 'something good' and his campaign spokesperson's statement that he had 'unequivocally denounced terrorism'. The New York Times' 2008 reporting on questions surrounding the speakers' backgrounds was also mentioned across these reports. Several of these reports also noted the alleged ties of the Muslim Students Association to the Muslim Brotherhood. **Provisional coverage gap:** left. The watch is not closed, so this is not yet a settled blindspot finding. ## Factuality profile of the covering outlets These are published factuality ratings of the outlets, not a verdict on whether this story or its claims are true. - veryLow: 1 - low: 1 - mixed: 5 - unknown: 2 ## Verification scope This page compares coverage and scores the source reporting. It is not a ClaimReview verdict on whether the underlying event or claim is true. ## Original reporting this was written from - [Felix Victorino](https://fvdigital.do/abdul-el-sayed-once-led-protest-against-ex-terrorists) — Abdul El-Sayed once led protest against 'ex-terrorists' - [Internewscast](https://internewscast.com/news/us/abdul-el-sayed-previously-led-protest-against-ex-terrorists) — Abdul El-Sayed Previously Led Protest Against ‘Ex-Terrorists’ - [New York Post](https://nypost.com/2026/09/14/us-news/abdul-el-sayed-once-led-protest-against-ex-terrorists) — Abdul El-Sayed protested against ‘ex-terrorists’ who converted to Christianity, unearthed report reveals - [Slay News](https://slaynews.com/michigan-democrat-abdul-el-sayed-led-protest-ex-terrorists-abandoned-islamic-extremism-converted-christianity) — Michigan Democrat Abdul El-Sayed Led Protest Against ‘Ex-Terrorists’ Who Abandoned Islamic Extremism, Converted to Christianity - [Senate Leadership Fund](https://senateleadershipfund.org/press-releases/icymi-abdul-el-sayed-protested-against-ex-terrorists-who-converted-to-christianity) — ICYMI: Abdul El-Sayed protested against 'ex-terrorists' who converted to Christianity - [wfmd.com](https://wfmd.com/2026/09/14/abdul-el-sayed-protested-against-ex-terrorists-who-converted-to-christianity-unearthed-report-reveals) — Abdul El-Sayed protested against ‘ex-terrorists’ who converted to Christianity, unearthed report reveals - [nytimespost.com](https://nytimespost.com/abdul-el-sayed-protested-against-ex-terrorists-who-converted-to-christianity-unearthed-report-reveals) — Abdul El-Sayed protested against 'ex-terrorists' who converted to Christianity, unearthed report reveals - [khbrknews](https://khbrknews.com/abdul-el-sayed-protested-against-ex-terrorists-who-converted-to-christianity-unearthed-report-reveals) — Abdul El-Sayed protested against ‘ex-terrorists’ who converted to Christianity, unearthed report reveals - [Fox News](https://foxnews.com/politics/abdul-el-sayed-protested-against-ex-terrorists-who-converted-christianity-unearthed-report-reveals) — Abdul El-Sayed protested against 'ex-terrorists' who converted to Christianity, unearthed report reveals ## Questions **What was the protest Abdul El-Sayed led in 2007 about?** Abdul El-Sayed led a protest at the University of Michigan in 2007 against three speakers described as 'ex-terrorists' who had previously been involved with the Palestine Liberation Organization and the Muslim Brotherhood. The speakers were discussing their conversion to Christianity. **What is the significance of the Muslim Students Association in this story?** Abdul El-Sayed was vice president of the Muslim Students Association (MSA) at the time of the 2007 protest. The MSA has been alleged to have ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, an organization that has faced scrutiny from the US government. **What do Abdul El-Sayed's campaign say about the protest?** El-Sayed's campaign spokesperson stated that the candidate has 'unequivocally denounced terrorism.' The spokesperson added that El-Sayed protested against speakers who were spreading misinformation and fabricating their backstories, and that these speakers had been widely condemned by experts. --- MediaBias News — https://mediabias.news. Reproduced from https://mediabias.news/politics/abdul-el-sayed-led-protest-against-speakers-described-as-ex-terrorists. Please cite as: MediaBias News, "Abdul El-Sayed led protest against speakers described as 'ex-terrorists'", https://mediabias.news/politics/abdul-el-sayed-led-protest-against-speakers-described-as-ex-terrorists