Latest news with #Hamas-backed
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Georgetown scholar says detention was ‘mockery of rule of law'
A Georgetown University scholar detained in March by the Trump administration said his detainment served as a 'mockery' of the rule of law. Badar Khan Suri, 41, was released on bond last week after a federal judge determined he should not be removed from the country until the court can consider his legal challenge. The postdoctoral student described his first week detained in Louisiana in an interview with The Associated Press. 'Same terror. Same fear. Same uncertainty. Same mockery of rule of law. Same mockery of due process,' Khan Suri said. 'I was going more and more deeper, reaching to my abyss. And I was discovering that the abyss also has more and more depth.' The Department of Homeland Security accused Khan Suri of having ties to Hamas through his father-in-law, Ahmed Yousef, who worked for the Hamas-backed government in Gaza in the early 2000s. However, Khan Suri's attorneys said he barely has contact with the relative, adding that their client has not spoken out in support of the terrorist group. 'I don't support Hamas. I support Palestine. I support Palestinians. And it is so deceiving for some people who just publish canards … They will just replace Palestine with Hamas,' he told the AP while declining to speak about his father-in-law. As a result of the allegations, Khan Suri has been separated from his son and confined in a facility where he has to use the bathroom in front of a camera monitor. He is one of multiple foreign students whom the Trump administration has sought to remove or detain regarding statements tied to the war in Gaza. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
23-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Georgetown scholar says detention was ‘mockery of rule of law'
A Georgetown scholar detained in March by the Trump administration said his detainment served as a 'mockery' of the rule of law. Khan Suri, 41, was released on bond last week after a federal judge determined he should not be removed from the country until the court can consider his legal challenge. The postdoctoral student described his first week detained in Louisiana in an interview with the Associated Press. 'Same terror. Same fear. Same uncertainty. Same mockery of rule of law. Same mockery of due process,' Suri said. 'I was going more and more deeper, reaching to my abyss. And I was discovering that the abyss also has more and more depth.' The Department of Homeland Security accused Suri of having ties to Hamas through his father-in-law, Ahmed Yousef, who worked for the Hamas-backed Gazan government in the early 2000s. However, Suri's attorneys said he barely has contact with the relative, adding that their client has not spoken out in support of the terrorist group. 'I don't support Hamas. I support Palestine. I support Palestinians. And it is so deceiving for some people who just publish canards … They will just replace Palestine with Hamas,' he told the AP while declining to speak about his father-in-law. As a result of the allegations, Suri has been separated from his son and confined in a facility where he has to use the bathroom in front of a camera monitor. He is one of multiple foreign students who the Trump administration has sought to remove or detain regarding statements tied to the war in Gaza.
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First Post
15-05-2025
- Politics
- First Post
US judge orders release of Indian scholar arrested over alleged Hamas links
An Indian scholar at Georgetown University, Badar Khan Suri, has been released from US immigration detention after a judge ruled in his favour. He was arrested over alleged links to Hamas. read more Indian national Badar Khan Suri has been arrested in the US for opposing American foreign policy and faces deportation. Image courtesy: Georgetown360 An Indian scholar from Georgetown University, Badar Khan Suri, was released from US immigration detention on Wednesday after a federal judge ruled in his favour. He was arrested over alleged links to Hamas amid the Trump administration's crackdown on students and universities. He will now return to his family in Virginia while his legal case continues. 'Hearing the judge's words brought tears to my eyes,' Suri's wife, Mapheze Saleh, said in a statement released by the Centre for Constitutional Rights (CCR), one of the groups representing her husband in court. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'Speaking out about what's happening in Palestine is not a crime,' Saleh added. 'Let's show the world that this country is still a place where people can and do express their beliefs without fear.' Khan Suri, who was held in Texas, is challenging the Trump administration over his arrest and detention, claiming violations of his First Amendment and other constitutional rights. He also faces deportation proceedings in Texas. Since the start of the Trump administration, immigration authorities have detained foreign students across the US, many of whom were involved in campus protests over the Israel-Hamas war. Khan Suri is among the latest to be freed, alongside Rumeysa Ozturk from Tufts University and Mohsen Mahdawi from Columbia University. Khan Suri was arrested on 17 March by plain-clothed officers outside his home in Arlington, Virginia. He was flown to detention centres in Louisiana and Texas. The Trump administration said his visa was revoked due to his social media posts and his wife's family ties to Gaza. They accused him of supporting Hamas, which the US designates as a terrorist group. However, Khan Suri's lawyers argue he was unfairly targeted because his wife's father had worked with the Hamas-backed Gazan government long before the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. The ACLU pointed out that Khan Suri barely knew his father-in-law, Ahmed Yousef. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD US District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles ordered his release, stating that Khan Suri had strong constitutional claims and posed no threat to the community. She emphasised that speaking out against Israel's military actions is protected political speech under the First Amendment, which applies to both citizens and non-citizens. While the Justice Department argued that his case should be handled in Texas and raised concerns over costs, the judge rejected these points, saying that national security concerns do not override constitutional rights. After the hearing, Khan Suri's lawyers criticised the Trump administration for 'disappearing' people over their views. ACLU attorney Sophia Gregg said, 'Ideas are not illegal. If they can do this to Dr Suri, they can do this to anyone.' Earlier, The father of Indian scholar, who is being held in the US, has said his son was wrongly accused by the Trump administration based on false claims and misleading links. He also denied that Badar has any connection to the Palestinian group Hamas. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD Speaking exclusively to Firstpost, Badar's father said the family has not spoken to him since his arrest. They are getting updates from his wife, who stays in touch with him through his lawyers. Khan Suri came to the US in 2022 on a J-1 visa as a visiting scholar and postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown. He and his wife have three children. Before his arrest, he taught a course on majority and minority human rights in South Asia and hoped to pursue an academic career.
India Today
14-05-2025
- Politics
- India Today
Indian researcher Badar Khan Suri freed as US court rejects alleged Hamas links
Badar Khan Suri, an Indian academic and visiting scholar at Georgetown University, has been ordered released from immigration detention by a US federal judge, who said his prolonged custody raised 'serious constitutional concerns.'Suri, a postdoctoral fellow in Washington, D.C., had been held in a Texas detention center for nearly two months after being arrested by plainclothes federal agents outside his home in Arlington, Virginia, on March 17. He was accused by the Trump administration of having ties to Hamas, the militant group designated a terrorist organization by the United District Judge Patricia Giles, ruling from Alexandria, Virginia, ordered his immediate release on Wednesday and authorized his return to his family on personal recognizance.'Speaking out about what's happening in Palestine is not a crime,' said Suri's wife, Mapheze Saleh, in a statement issued by the Center for Constitutional Rights. 'Let's show the world that this country is still a place where people can and do express their beliefs without fear.'Badar Khan Suri said he was glad to be released as he left a federal detention facility in Alvarado near Dallas alongside his attorney. Khan Suri will go home to his family in Virginia while he awaits the outcome of his petition against the Trump administration for wrongful arrest and detention in violation of the First Amendment and other constitutional rights. He's also facing deportation proceedings in an immigration court in Texas, the Associated Press who entered the US in 2022 on a J-1 visa, is married to Saleh, a Palestinian American. Immigration authorities alleged he had 'undisputed family ties' to Hamas because his father-in-law previously served in the Hamas-backed Gaza government. However, the American Civil Liberties Union argued that Suri barely knew the man and had never advocated to Associated Press, the Trump administration has said that it revoked Khan Suri's visa because of his social media posts and his wife's connection to Gaza as a Palestinian American. They accused him of supporting Hamas, which the US has designated as a terrorist a former student of Jamia Millia Islamia, was teaching "Majoritarianism and Minority Rights in South Asia" and had a PhD in peace and conflict studies from India, as per the Georgetown University authorities have detained college students from across the country — many of whom participated in campus protests over the Israel-Hamas war — since the first days of the Trump administration. Khan Suri is the latest to win release from custody, along with Rumeysa Ozturk, a Tufts University student from Turkey, and Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palestinian student at Columbia Watch
South Wales Argus
14-05-2025
- Politics
- South Wales Argus
Georgetown student released from immigration detention after judge's ruling
Badar Khan Suri, who was being held in Texas, will go home to his family in Virginia while he awaits the outcome of his petition against the Trump administration for wrongful arrest and detention in violation of the First Amendment and other constitutional rights. He is also facing deportation proceedings in an immigration court in Texas. Immigration authorities have detained college students from across the country — many of whom participated in campus protests over the Israel-Hamas war — since the first days of the Trump administration. Mr Khan Suri is the latest to win release from custody, along with Rumeysa Ozturk, a Tufts University student from Turkey, and Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palestinian student at Columbia University. Mr Khan Suri was arrested by masked, plain-clothed officers on the evening of March 17 outside his apartment complex in Arlington, Virginia. He was then put on a plane to Louisiana and later to a detention centre in Texas. Mapheze Saleh, wife of detained Georgetown University scholar Badar Khan Suri (Jacquelyn Martin/AP) The Trump administration has said that it revoked Mr Khan Suri's visa because of his social media posts and his wife's connection to Gaza as a Palestinian American. They accused him of supporting Hamas, which the US has designated as a terrorist organisation. Mr Khan Suri and his wife, Mapheze Saleh, have been targeted because Ms Saleh's father worked with the Hamas-backed Gazan government for more than a decade, but before Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, Mr Khan Suri's attorneys say. According to the US government, Mr Khan Suri has undisputed family ties to the terrorist organisation, which he 'euphemistically refers to as 'the government of Gaza''. But the American Civil Liberties Union has said that Mr Khan Suri hardly knew the father, Ahmed Yousef. US District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles in Alexandria said she was releasing Mr Khan Suri because she felt he had substantial constitutional claims against the Trump administration. She also considered the needs of his family and said she didn't believe he was a danger to the community. 'Speech regarding the conflict there and opposing Israel's military campaign is likely protected political speech,' Judge Giles said. 'And thus he was likely engaging in protected speech.' The judge added: 'The First Amendment does not distinguish between citizens and non-citizens.' Judge Giles acknowledged the Trump administration's need to prioritise national security, but said that 'whatever deference may be appropriate, concerns of national security' do not supersede the judiciary. David Byerley, a Justice Department attorney, had argued against Mr Khan Suri's release. He told the judge that Mr Khan Suri's First Amendment case is inextricably intertwined with the deportation case in Texas, so he should stay there. He also cited costs of redetaining Mr Khan Suri as a reason to not grant him bail. After the court hearing, Mr Khan Suri's lawyers declared victory and criticised the Trump administration for 'disappearing' people over their ideas. 'He should have never had his First Amendment rights, which protect all of us regardless of citizenship, trampled on because ideas are not illegal,' said Sophia Gregg, an ACLU attorney. 'Americans don't want to live in a country where the federal government disappears people whose views it doesn't like. If they can do this to Dr Suri, they can do this to anyone.' Mr Khan Suri, an Indian citizen, came to the US in 2022 through a J-1 visa, working at Georgetown as a visiting scholar and postdoctoral fellow. He and his wife have three children: a nine-year-old son and five-year-old twins. Before his arrest, he taught a course on majority and minority human rights in South Asia, according to court records. The filings said he hoped to become a professor and embark on a career in academia.
