US Muslim body: Another 'spy' confesses to links with far-right group

The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), US' largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organisation, has said it has identified a second "spy" working for and paid by an infamous anti-Muslim organisation, Investigative Project on Terrorism (IPT).

The "IPT spy has voluntarily come forward, confessed, and agreed to cooperate with us," said CAIR on Tuesday, adding he was not part of the Muslim advocacy organisation but "was an active volunteer in a large mosque who was invited to national community meetings and events."

"The individual has informed us that Steven Emerson paid him $3K per month to record prominent Muslim leaders; over $100K over 4 years," CAIR said in a tweet.

Emerson, a notorious Islamophobe and the founder of IPT, has not commented on CAIR's fresh allegations. 

Last week, CAIR fired the head of its Ohio chapter over allegations he shared confidential information with IPT.

The rights body did not release the "second mole's" name, saying it's still investigating while alerting Muslim leaders and organisations the "IPT spy" had targeted. 

CAIR urges co-opted insiders to confess 

CAIR said the alleged spy went to the mosque leaders "before being confronted, confessed and sought forgiveness and agreed to cooperate."

"This is what anyone who helped IPT or other hate groups should do. Come forward now. Don't wait to be exposed. Do the right thing," the group urged. 

Citing "evidence" that it gathered last year, CAIR said the IPT was "communicating with and providing assistance to Israeli intelligence with the office of then-prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu."

"One of Emerson's goals, we're told, was protecting the Israeli govt by undermining Muslims engaged in political and human rights activism."

Emerson, has "a history of promoting falsified information and conspiracy theories about Islam and Muslims," according to a Georgetown University research project on Islamophobia. Emerson is considered an anti-Muslim activist by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

READ MORE: Muslim advocacy group director fired for working with anti-Muslim group

Iqbal-Emerson email exchanges released

Last week, CAIR exposed the first "spy" – its Ohio director, Romin Iqbal – who it said confessed to working for IPT.

CAIR said it had hired an outside forensic specialist to investigate evidence it received that the IPT had tried to infiltrate Muslim-American organisations such as CAIR using "moles."

The specialist reported to CAIR that Iqbal had been sharing information, "including surreptitiously recorded conversations, strategic plans, and private emails," with the IPT.

On Tuesday, CAIR released some of the email exchanges between Iqbal and Emerson, pledging to continue to "unravel this plot".