Ayman Soliman walked the line of supporters gathered along a gray, brick wall in Cincinnati, Ohio‘s Clifton Mosque, stopping to shake each person’s hand. Just moments later, he stepped behind the podium in the center of the room to address his audience.

“It is just as our Christian friends call it, a rebirth. I am reborn today. I was reborn at 12 p.m. today,” the imam and former interfaith chaplain said.

In his first time addressing the public directly since his release from Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention Friday afternoon, Soliman thanked his friends, his fellow clergy and the surrounding community for their efforts to advocate for his freedom. He wouldn’t be here without their efforts — and his faith — he said, and he is indebted to all of them.

“I’m free today because o

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