Sami al-Arian (RWC)

The Florida university professor convicted on a terrorism charge continues to refuse to testify about whether Islamic charities in Northern Virginia were aiding terrorists.

Sami al-Arian is serving federal prison time for contempt of court and has had his sentence extended to at least October by a federal judge in Alexandria Virginia.

In 2005, a jury in Tampa deadlocked on nine terrorism charges and al-Arian plead guilty to one.

He has been waiting for deportation after being released from prison.

Recently, he again refused to appear before a grand jury continuing to probe into whether group of Islamic charities in Herndon was funneling money to terrorist organizations.

Al-Arian went on a hunger strike for sixty days and was the darling of some Muslim organizations for it. He lost 55 pounds but none of his hubris.

His trial drew liberal political supporters and university faculty members (they seem generally to be one in the same) -but they dropped off after powerful evidence of a connection to terrorism was introduced in his trial.

The case originally swept up a prominent, politically active Muslim, Abdurahman Alamoudi, who later confessed to taking money from Libya to assist in a plot to assassinate the Saudi ruler.

Mrs. al-Arian told the Washington Post that her husband will never testify before any Grand Jury.  She said as a Palestinian it would be "shameful" and he would be considered an "informant".

Nothing to hide, nothing to fear, would be my view . Maybe that’s yours.