Indian academic released from immigration custody after US federal judge’s ruling

Indian academician Badar Khan Suri, a researcher at Georgetown University in the United States, was freed from a Texas immigration detention centre on Wednesday, hours after a federal judge ordered his release, BBC reported.

Suri was arrested on March 17 by immigration authorities for allegedly “spreading propaganda” of Palestinian militant group Hamas. He was informed that his visa had been revoked, according to a lawsuit filed by the researcher’s lawyer challenging the detention.

The moment our brother Dr. Badar Khan Suri was freed. He requested that the first piece of cloth given to him would be his Keffiyeh. pic.twitter.com/QIUmNnk5Dr— Dr. Omar Suleiman (@omarsuleiman) May 14, 2025

On Wednesday, US District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles found that Suri’s detention infringed upon his rights to free speech and due process, BBC reported.

The Department of Homeland Security has alleged that Suri was “actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism” on social media. “Suri has close connections to a known or suspected terrorist, who is a senior advisor to Hamas,” a Fox News reporter quoted the department as saying in a statement.

Hamas is designated as a terrorist organisation in the US.

However, the department did not provide details of the activities Suri was allegedly involved in.

Hassan Ahmad, the lawyer representing Suri, had argued that the Indian researcher was being punished because his wife, a US citizen, is of...

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