Judge: Trump administration cannot deport pro-Palestinian Georgetown University student
A federal judge has ordered that President Donald Trump’s administration must not deport Badar Khan Suri, an Indian man studying at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C.
The order will remain in effect until lifted by the court, according to the three-paragraph order by U.S. District Judge Patricia Giles in Alexandria, Virginia.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security accused Badar Khan Suri of having connections to the Palestinian militant group Hamas, claiming he spread Hamas propaganda and antisemitism on social media, according to a statement shared with Fox News.
The DHS statement to Fox News, which was reposted by White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, did not cite evidence. It said Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined that Suri’s activities “rendered him deportable.”
Suri is living in the U.S. on a student visa, married to an American citizen, and has been detained in Alexandria, Louisiana, according to his lawyer. He is awaiting an immigration court date, his lawyer said.
Federal agents arrested him outside his home in Rosslyn, Virginia, on Monday night, and according to his attorney Hassan Ahmad, his client is “awaiting his court date in immigration court” in Louisiana, according to The New York Times.
Politico first reported the news of Suri’s detention.
In a statement to Paste BN, a Georgetown University spokesperson said Khan Suri entered the U.S. 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,” the statement said. “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.”
Suri’s wife, Mapheze Saleh, is a U.S. citizen, said Ahmad. Saleh is from Gaza, according to the Georgetown University website, which said she has written for Al Jazeera and Palestinian media outlets and worked with the foreign ministry in Gaza. Saleh has not been arrested.
Paste BN contacted ICE and Homeland Security officials on Thursday but has not received a response.
Contributing: Reuters