Abdul El-Sayed’s Sister-In-Law Appeared On Terrorist Watch List, Court Filings Indicate
The Federalist
Joshua Monnington
October 5, 2026
Democrat Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed’s sister-in-law appeared in the Terrorist Screening Database, court documents filed in 2016 indicate. Mariam Jukaku, the sister of El-Sayed’s wife, Sarah Jukaku, was a participant in two suits the Council on American-Islamic Relations brought against U.S. government officials on behalf of individuals disputing their alleged placement on the watch list, according to court filings.
One suit sought an injunction removing the plaintiffs from the database and a declaratory judgment that their Fifth Amendment rights had been violated. The other was a class action lawsuit the plaintiffs filed to obtain compensatory damages and recover legal fees from the government. Jukaku appeared in a Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) press conference announcing the suits. Texas and Florida recently designated CAIR a terrorist organization.
Before joining the suits, Jukaku filed a complaint with the Department of Homeland Security after she reportedly noticed in 2012 that “her boarding pass was stamped with the ‘SSSS’ designation, indicating that she had been designated as a ‘known or suspected terrorist.’” Jukaku, who is Muslim, said the designation triggered “extensive searches, pat downs and chemical testing” and speculated that she was added to the watch list because of racism or religious discrimination, according to the suit. She also said she believed she had been removed from the list following her DHS complaint, though the government reportedly never confirmed either the removal or her presence on the list.
When contacted for comment on the matter, DHS referred The Federalist to the FBI. In response to a comment request from The Federalist, the FBI stated that “it is the U.S. government’s policy to neither confirm nor deny a person’s inclusion in the Terrorist Screening Dataset, commonly known as the terrorist watchlist.”
. . .
Jukaku could not be reached for comment concerning the alleged watch list designation.
. . .
El-Sayed’s family members have drawn scrutiny numerous times throughout his campaign for U.S. Senate in Michigan. His wife’s decision not to accept Medicare at her practice has prompted criticism in light of El-Sayed’s emphatic endorsement of Medicare-for-all. Sarah and Mariam Jukaku’s father, Tayeb Jukaku, who is on the board of directors for CAIR Michigan, has backed El-Sayed with $300,000 in funding and is alleged to be a leader of a Muslim Brotherhood front group that funds Hamas.
Eman Abdelhadi, El-Sayed’s half-sister, was taken into custody for allegedly spitting on a police officer while protesting ICE; she has pled not guilty. El-Sayed’s birth mother reportedly worked for a designated terror organization that supported Osama bin Laden.
El-Sayed, however, has his own string of controversies to grapple with, many arising just within the past few weeks. His exchange with a Michigan University student went viral when he refused to condemn the Iranian regime and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization responsible for the deaths of hundreds of U.S. servicemen and thousands of Iranians.
Last month a document surfaced showing El-Sayed backed the Muslim Brotherhood and a “purge” of media and law enforcement in Egypt in 2012. He has openly supported Sharia Law, and last week he campaigned with Osama Siblani, a pro-Hezbollah, pro-Hamas activist — all while promising to push a bevy of radical left-wing policies if elected.
Read more here.