Judge Still Assessing Case Accusing Iraqi of Spying

SAN PEDRO — A U.S. Immigration Court judge continues to ponder the fate of an Iraqi doctor who has challenged government allegations that he might be a spy for a Middle Eastern power.

Judge D.D. Sitgraves is reviewing more than two weeks of testimony and numerous documents to determine whether Dr. Ali Yasim Mohammad Karim, 37, is a threat to national security and should be excluded from the United States.

Before taking the case under submission last week, Sitgraves issued a tentative ruling, saying that Karim had presented more than enough evidence to rebut the government’s position that he might be a spy for Iran, Iraq or Syria.

Sitgraves said, however, her decision is not final and could change after a thorough review of the evidence and case summaries to be filed next week by Karim’s attorneys as well as those representing the U.S. Immigration and Naturalization Service.