Los Angeles: Sami Hamdi, a British political commentator, was detained on Monday by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement after he was detained by ICE officers at San Francisco International Airport, according to federal officials. One senior US official said the detention was related to comments he has made about the Middle East, the Associated Press reported.
Hamdi, who is Muslim, was on a speaking tour in the US and on Saturday had addressed the annual gala for the Sacramento, California, chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR.
“Earlier this morning, ICE agents abducted British Muslim journalist and political commentator Sami Hamdi at San Francisco Airport, apparently in response to his vocal criticism of the Israeli government during his ongoing speaking tour,” the group said in a Sunday social media post.
The detention is the latest in the Trump administration's ramped-up efforts to identify and potentially expel thousands of foreigners in the United States who it says have either fomented or participated in unrest or publicly supported protests against Israel's military operations in Gaza. The administration has also denied visas to applicants whose social media histories have been critical of its policies.
Those actions have been criticised by civil rights groups as violations of constitutional protections for freedom of speech, which apply to anyone in the United States and not just to American citizens.
It was not immediately clear what specific comments triggered Hamdi's detention.
A Muslim advocacy organisation called for Hamdi's immediate release. The group said Hamdi, 35, has not been deported and remains in US custody.
After being alerted to his past and current statements related to the Middle East, a decision to revoke Hamdi's visa was made on Friday, according to the senior US official. The official did not specify what comments.
Hamdi, a political commentator who often speaks out against Israel and the war in Gaza, is described on his LinkedIn profile as managing director of The International Interest, a risk and intelligence consulting group. It did not immediately respond to a request for comment.