First off, where’s your son? Then we’ll talk Islamophobia.

(WKRG) — It’s a situation that has the president of a local mosque pondering his next move.

“I believe in all my heart that this is somewhat of a discrimination,” said Shafik Hammami. The Islamic Society of Mobile has called East Drive home for over 20 years. The buildings however, are much older, and that’s why Hammami wants to rebuild.

But many residents in the area are against building a bigger building, saying traffic is a major problem. “There’s not enough room. There’s not room for the cars. Really it’s a small area to expand a school and a church,” said neighbor Beverly Montgomery.

The Mobile City Council agreed, blocking his construction plans. Hammami feels the traffic concerns are just a mask to cover people’s prejudices about the Islamic faith.

“Does it have anything to do with them being Muslim?” I asked Montgomery. “Not really, no. Of course it’s, you know we have feelings. Terrorist that came from that particular mosque, makes you think,” she said.

And that terrorist is Omar Hammami, who is Shafik Hammami’s son. He is on the America’s Most Wanted list for supporting the terrorist organization Al Shabaab and recruiting terrorist for the organization.

Omar Hammami, one of the most notorious Americans in overseas jihadi groups, moved from Alabama to Somalia and joined al-Shabab in about 2006. He fought alongside the al-Qaida-linked group for years while gaining fame for posting jihadi videos on YouTube.

HT: JT