U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents have arrested a foreign exchange student at Georgetown University.
Badar Khan Suri, an Indian national, was arrested Monday over allegations he’s been spreading propaganda on behalf of the Islamic terrorist group Hamas.
Suri, a doctoral student in the U.S. on a student visa, is accused of “actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media.”
In a statement, a senior Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official said:
“Suri has close connections to a known or suspected terrorist, who is a senior advisor to Hamas.”
DHS did not name the suspected terrorist or Hamas advisor.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined on March 15 that Suri’s activities and presence in the U.S. were a national security risk, the senior official said.
Rubio “rendered him deportable” under the Immigration and Nationality Act
The act is a rarely-used legal statute.
It gives Rubio sweeping power to deport those who pose “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.”
Rubio has cited the same statute as grounds for the deportation of Mahmoud Khalil.
Khalil is a Columbia University student and pro-Hamas activist.
He was detained by federal immigration authorities earlier this month.
Authorities suspended his visa and revoked his green card over his role in leading pro-Hamas protests on Columbia’s campus.
Federal immigration officials are moving to deport Khalil back to Syria.
However, a judge has said Khalil can challenge his detention.
A Georgetown University spokesperson said Suri was duly granted a visa to enter the U.S. to perform doctoral research on peacebuilding in Iraq and Afghanistan.
In a statement, the university spokesperson said:
“We are not aware of him engaging in any illegal activity, and we have not received a reason for his detention.”
Suri, who is married to an American citizen, was detained in Alexandria, Louisiana.
He is now awaiting a court date in immigration court, his lawyer told Reuters.
