Arrest and Legal Proceedings
Badar Khan Suri, an Indian academic and Green Card holder, is set to be deported from the United States following his detention by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) at his residence in Arlington, Virginia. A postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown University, Suri’s arrest has raised significant controversy, with his legal team asserting that he is being targeted due to his Palestinian spouse, while U.S. officials claim he has connections to a designated terrorist organization.
According to reports, masked DHS agents informed Suri that his visa had been revoked before taking him into custody. Tricia McLaughlin, Assistant Secretary at DHS, stated, “Suri was a foreign exchange student at Georgetown University actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media.” Furthermore, DHS alleges that Suri has “close connections to a known or suspected terrorist, who is a senior advisor to Hamas.” This claim likely refers to his father-in-law, Ahamed Yousef, a former deputy foreign minister in the Hamas government and a leader at the House of Wisdom Institute in Gaza.
On March 15, 2025, the U.S. Secretary of State determined that Suri’s activities made him deportable under Section 237(a)(4)(C)(i) of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), which applies to foreign nationals engaged in actions considered a security threat.
Legal Defense and Allegations of Bias
Suri’s legal representative, Hassan Ahmad, argues that his client is being unfairly singled out, stating, “He is being punished because of the Palestinian heritage of his wife, and because the government suspects that he and his wife oppose U.S. foreign policy toward Israel.” Ahmad maintains that Suri’s academic work and personal connections do not constitute a security threat.
Suri met his wife, Maphaz Ahmad Yousef, in 2011 while volunteering with an international aid convoy to Gaza. She was employed as a translator for a humanitarian organization. Due to political instability in Egypt, the couple was unable to hold their wedding in Gaza and instead married in Delhi in January 2014.
Academic Work and Broader Context
Before joining Georgetown University, Suri studied at Jamia Millia Islamia in Delhi. At the time of his arrest, he was teaching a course titled “Majoritarianism and Minority Rights in South Asia.” His detention follows a broader pattern of government actions against individuals linked to pro-Palestinian movements. Recently, Columbia University student Ranjani Srinivasan opted for self-deportation to Canada after DHS linked her to pro-Palestinian campus activities.
DHS has intensified its scrutiny of individuals suspected of spreading Hamas propaganda, as part of the Trump administration’s broader efforts to address radical activities on U.S. campuses. The case has drawn attention from civil rights advocates and academic circles, who argue that such actions may have far-reaching implications for academic freedom and international scholars in the United States.
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