Latest news with #Fifthamendment
Yahoo
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Georgetown scholar released from ICE detention says they treated him like a ‘subhuman'
Badar Khan Suri, the postdoctoral scholar and professor at Georgetown University who was arrested and targeted for deportation by the Trump administration, has been released. Khan Suri, has been held in the Prairieland Detention Center in Texas since March, left the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility Wednesday afternoon. It comes after Eastern District of Virginia Judge Patricia Giles said in her ruling that Khan Suri's detention was in violation of the First Amendment, the right to free speech, and the Fifth amendment, the right to due process. Khan Suri spoke out for the first time after being released. 'There was no charge, there was nothing,' he said from outside the detention center. 'They made a sub human out of me.' Khan Suri's attorneys had filed a petition that sought to determine whether his detainment was lawful, known as a habeas corpus petition. He was sent to Texas after first being detained overnight at a Virginia facility, and then transferred to Louisiana due to a lack of space in Virginia, according to court documents. The government last month filed a motion to move the case out of Virginia, arguing that the habeas petition must be filed where the petitioner is detained. Giles denied that motion, citing the lack of clarity as to where Khan Suri actually was when the petition was filed. Khan Suri, who has been a postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown for the past three years, was accused by the Department of Homeland Security of 'actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media.' Khan Suri 'has close connections to a known or suspected terrorist, who is a senior advisor to Hamas,' DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said on X. In her ruling, Giles said that the government had failed to provide evidence that Khan Suri was a flight risk or danger to the community. She added that it also did not provide proof to support that Khan Suri would be a national security risk. His wife, Maphaz Ahmad Yousef, said that hearing the judge's words 'brought tears to my eyes.' 'I wish I could give her a heartfelt hug,' Yousef said at a news conference. ACLU attorney Sophia Gregg said the case was about more than the release of Khan Suri. 'Americans don't want to live in a country where the federal government disappears people whose views it doesn't like,' she said at the news conference. 'If they can do this to Dr. Suri, they can do this to anyone.' Yousef said that while the ordeal has been difficult for her family, Khan Suri said that he did not regret his support for Palestine. 'Badar told me, 'If my suffering in the detention center is because I married to a Palestinian and because I spoke out against the genocide in Gaza, then I should wear it as a badge of honor,'' she said at the news conference. Yousef also said called for the freedom of those who have been 'disappeared and detained,' including Columbia graduate student and pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, who's been in ICE custody since early March. "I can't wait for the moment when my husband will reunite with my children," she said. "It's a victory, a victory for all of us, a victory for justice.' Yousef, an American citizen who is originally from Gaza, is also a student at Georgetown. Her father, Ahmed Yousef, is a former adviser to now-deceased Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. In an interview with The New York Times, Ahmed Yousef said he left his position more than a decade ago. He has also been outspoken in his criticism of Hamas. According to court documents, Khan Suri met his father-in-law in person for the first and only time in 2013 to ask for his blessing to marry Yousef. Since getting married, Khan Suri has spoken to Ahmed Yousef from time to time about 'family matters and his academic pursuits,' the documents said. But since the entire family moved to the U.S. in 2023, Khan Suri has not spoken directly to his father-in-law. Maphaz Ahmad Yousef, who's lost several family members in the war in Gaza, has posted information about the events occurring there, court documents say. 'On not more than a handful of occasions, Dr. Khan Suri also made social media posts expressing support for the Palestinian people, criticizing the death toll in Gaza, affirming international law principles, and criticizing U.S. support for Israel's war in Gaza,' the documents said. Khan Suri says he has never attended any protests. 'I came to the U.S. to work and raise my family: I go to work, come home late, and still they came and took me and broke my family,' Khan Suri said in a news release. 'In my work, I've seen lots of injustice. I just didn't think it would happen to me here.' Khan Suri's attorney Hassan Ahmad previously told NBC News that Khan Suri has never made any pro-Hamas or antisemitic comments, calling his detention 'contemptible.' Khan Suri's habeas petition also described the conditions in the detention center. When first arriving in Texas, the documents said, Suri wasn't assigned to a bed in a dorm and was instead put in the facility's 'TV room,' where the television runs every day from 5 a.m. to 2 a.m, the petition said. Khan Suri had also requested religious accommodations, the petition said, and only received halal food after five days. 'On April 2, officers came and told him that he had complained through his lawyer about his religious accommodations and asked him for more details. After Dr. Khan Suri reaffirmed his needs, he was given a prayer mat, a Quran, and provided a space on a bed in the dorm, outside of the TV room.' While detained, Khan Suri was issued a bright red uniform, usually reserved for individuals classified as high security due to their criminal history, the petition said. When he asked about his uniform, Khan Suri was told that he fell under the category due to his association 'with a known criminal group — presumably based on Respondents' unfounded claims of his connections to Hamas,' the petition said. 'Due to his classification and security protocols at the facility, Dr. Khan Suri is only permitted two hours per week of recreation,' the petition article was originally published on
NBC News
14-05-2025
- Politics
- NBC News
Georgetown scholar Badar Khan Suri released after months in ICE detention
A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the release of Badar Khan Suri, a postdoctoral scholar at Georgetown University who was arrested and targeted for deportation last month by the Trump administration. Judge Patricia Giles said in her ruling that Khan Suri's Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention was in violation of the First Amendment, the right to free speech; and the Fifth amendment, the right to due process. Khan Suri has been held in the Prairieland Detention Center in Texas since March. Maphaz Ahmad Yousef, Khan Suri's wife, said during a press conference after the hearing that Giles' words 'brought tears to my eyes.' 'I wish I could give her a heartfelt hug,' Yousef said. In a press conference after the hearing, ACLU attorney Sophia Gregg said this case is about more than the release of Khan Suri. 'Americans don't want to live in a country where the federal government disappears people whose views it doesn't like,' she said. 'If they can do this to Dr. Suri, they can do this to anyone.' Khan Suri's attorneys previously filed a petition that sought to determine whether his detainment was lawful, known as a habeas corpus petition. He was sent to Texas after first being detained overnight at a Virginia facility, and then transferred to Louisiana due to a lack of space in Virginia, according to court documents. The government last month filed a motion to move the case out of Virginia, arguing that the habeas petition must be filed where the petitioner is detained. Judge Giles denied that motion, citing the lack of clarity as to where Khan Suri actually was when the petition was filed. Khan Suri, who has been a postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown for the past three years, was accused by the Department of Homeland Security of 'actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media.' DHS spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin addressed Khan Suri's detention on X, saying that 'Suri has close connections to a known or suspected terrorist, who is a senior advisor to Hamas.' Yousef, an American citizen who is originally from Gaza, is also a student at Georgetown. Her father, Ahmed Yousef, is a former adviser to now-deceased Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh. In an interview with The New York Times, Ahmed Yousef said he left his position more than a decade ago. He has also been outspoken in his criticism of Hamas. According to court documents, Khan Suri met his father-in-law in person for the first and only time in 2013 to ask for his blessing to marry Maphaz Ahmad Yousef. Since getting married, Khan Suri has spoken to Ahmed Yousef from time to time about 'family matters and his academic pursuits,' the documents said. But since the entire family moved to the U.S. in 2023, Khan Suri has not spoken directly to his father-in-law. Maphaz Ahmad Yousef, who's lost several family members in the war in Gaza, has posted information about the events occurring there, court documents say. And 'on not more than a handful of occasions,' Khan Suri also posted on social media about the issue. 'On not more than a handful of occasions, Dr. Khan Suri also made social media posts expressing support for the Palestinian people, criticizing the death toll in Gaza, affirming international law principles, and criticizing U.S. support for Israel's war in Gaza,' the documents said. Khan Suri says he has never attended any protests. 'I came to the U.S. to work and raise my family: I go to work, come home late, and still they came and took me and broke my family,' Khan Suri said in a news release. 'In my work, I've seen lots of injustice. I just didn't think it would happen to me here.' Khan Suri's attorney Hassan Ahmad previously told NBC News that he has never made any pro-Hamas or antisemitic comments, calling his detention 'contemptible.' Khan Suri's habeas petition also described the conditions in the detention center in which he has been detained. When first arriving in Texas, the documents said, Suri wasn't assigned to a bed in a dorm and was instead put in the facility's 'TV room,' a room in which the television runs every day from 5:00 a.m. to 2:00 a.m, the petition said. Khan Suri had also requested religious accommodations, the petition said, and only received halal food after five days. 'On April 2, officers came and told him that he had complained through his lawyer about his religious accommodations and asked him for more details. After Dr. Khan Suri reaffirmed his needs, he was given a prayer mat, a Quran, and provided a space on a bed in the dorm, outside of the TV room.' While detained, Khan Suri was issued a bright red uniform, usually reserved for individuals classified as high security due to their criminal history, the petition said. When he asked about his uniform, Khan Suri was told that he fell under the category due to his association 'with a known criminal group—presumably based on Respondents' unfounded claims of his connections to Hamas,' the petition said. 'Due to his classification and security protocols at the facility, Dr. Khan Suri is only permitted two hours per week of recreation,' the petition said.
Yahoo
11-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
White House Press Secretary Spars With AP Reporter Who Challenged Her On The Impact Of Trump's Tariffs
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt sparred with an Associated Press reporter who challenged her assertions of who ultimately will pay the price for President Donald Trump's tariffs. The AP's Josh Boak asked about Trump's planned speech later today to the Business Roundtable, where he will speak to a group of CEOs amid increased concerns about the economy. More from Deadline Associated Press Warns Of Trump White House Ban In Latest Court Filing: "The Constitution Does Not Allow The Government To Control Speech" AP, Reuters And Bloomberg Warn That White House Moves To Limit Wire Service Access Threaten "An Independent, Free Press" White House Says It Will Now Determine Who Will Participate In Press Pool 'He's going there as he is proposing tax hikes in the form of tariffs,' Boak said. 'Not true,' Leavitt said. Boak when on, asking, 'I'm curious why he is prioritizing that in with the tax cuts.' Leavitt seemed irritated. 'He's actually not implementing tax hikes. Tariffs are a tax hike on foreign countries that again have been ripping us off. Tariffs are a tax cut for the American people. The president is a staunch advocate of tax cuts.' Boak then said, 'I'm sorry, but have you ever paid a tariff? Because I have. They don't get charged on foreign companies. They get charged on the importers.' Leavitt responded, 'Ultimately, when we have fair and balanced trade which the American people have not seen in decades…revenues will stay here. Wages will go up. And our country will be made wealthy again. And I think it's insulting that you are trying to test my knowledge of economics and the decisions this president has made. I now regret giving a question to the Associated Press.' When tariffs are imposed on imports, U.S. businesses pay the tariffs for those foreign purchases. Many economists, including those at the Tax Foundation, have warned that the costs ultimately will be passed on to the consumer. Trump has banned the AP from Oval Office press conferences and other White House and presidential events after the news organization declined to switch the name of the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America. The AP has sued Leavitt and other Trump administration figures, arguing that their First and Fifth amendment rights were violated. A judge will consider their claim later this month. AP reporters and photographers still are allowed to attend Leavitt's press briefings. Best of Deadline 2025 TV Series Renewals: Photo Gallery The Fox News To White House Pipeline: TV Personalities Who Joined The Trump Administration The 25 Highest-Grossing Animated Films Of All Time At The Box Office
