Israel Rejects the Former Cat Stevens

While Middle East peace talks were underway in the U.S., a Jerusalem airport detained and deported Yusuf Islam, formerly known as Cat Stevens, alleging that he donated money to a militant Islamic sect on a previous visit.

The Wednesday visit was Islam's second aborted attempt to gain access to Israel. In 1990, he and his son were barred from the country. The Israeli government claims that on a 1988 visit to Jerusalem, Islam donated tens of thousands of dollars to a violent Islamic group known as the Hamas.

Islam arrived at the airport at 2:30 a.m. on Wednesday. When his name was found on a list of people banned from Israel, he was detained by airport officials. Islam claims that he was locked in a cell sans water or a bathroom for hours before he was finally deported. "I don't see any reason for this to happen in a time of peace," Islam said. According to an AP report, airport officials deny that Islam was mistreated in any way.

In other Cat Stevens news, VH1 will air Cat Stevens: Behind the Music on Oct. 1 at 9 p.m. The episode will tap various Stevens producers including Paul Samwell-Smith in addition to interviews with Islam himself. The episode claims to spotlight the "three lives" of the "Seventies superstar singer-songwriter" charting his earliest successes as a musician, his arrival as international star and ultimately his conversion to the Muslim faith, which marked the end of his recording career as Cat Stevens.

"It could help blow away some of those myths and erroneous stories that have circulated for years," Islam told RollingStone.com last month. "I hope people will finally realize that my life didn't change as much as it developed, and I always continued to be an artist. I made a choice to actively try to make a difference in the world, just as I wrote and sang about."

ANDREW DANSBY
(July 14, 2000)