Indian researcher Badar Khan Suri has been detained in the US by immigration officers and faces deportation. This comes amid the crackdown on immigrants by US President Donald Trump. Suri, who was teaching and studying at Georgetown University, was arrested from his residence in Virginia on Monday night (Mar 17).

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Suri was arrested by masked agents who said they were from the Department of Homeland Security; his lawsuit mentioned that he was told the government had revoked his visa. According to Suri's court papers, he has no criminal record. The postdoctoral fellow's lawyer, Hassan Ahmad, in his petition, highlighted that Suri's wife, Mapheze Saleh, who has Palestinian lineage, is the reason for the arrest. As reported by news outlet Politico, Ahmad argued, 'the government suspects that he and his wife oppose US foreign policy toward Israel.' Earlier, Saleh was accused of having alleged “ties with Hamas”.

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Tricia McLaughlin,  Assistant Secretary, Department of Homeland Security, confirmed that Suri was 'a foreign exchange student at Georgetown University actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media.'

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In her statement on X, McLaughlin added, "Suri has close connections to a known or suspected terrorist, who is a senior advisor to Hamas. The Secretary of State issued a determination on March 15, 2025, that Suri’s activities and presence in the United States rendered him deportable under INA section 237(a)(4)(C)(i),"

Georgetown University released a statement: “Dr Khan Suri is an Indian national who was duly granted a visa to enter the United States to continue his doctoral research on peacebuilding in Iraq and Afghanistan. We are not aware of him engaging in any illegal activity, and we have not received a reason for his detention."

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"We support our community members' rights to free and open inquiry, deliberation and debate, even if the underlying ideas may be difficult, controversial or objectionable. We expect the legal system to adjudicate this case fairly,” it added.