A federal judge in Virginia has ordered the release of a Georgetown University researcher picked up by ICE in March and detained in Texas pending removal proceedings.
Badar Khan Suri, an Indian national, came to the U.S. in December 2022 through the J-1 exchange program to participate in a fellowship at Georgetown. His wife, Mapheze Selah, a U.S. citizen who had resided in Gaza since the age of 5 and whom he met in Gaza as part of a humanitarian convoy, returned to the U.S. with their three young children in November 2023. Saleh's father is a former deputy of foreign affairs in Gaza.
Per court pleadings:
In October 2023, Ms. Saleh began sharing posts online detailing events in Gaza and "express[ing] sorrow for the deaths of Gazan people." Id. ¶ 11. By February 2025, Ms. Saleh learned that she was being targeted by certain websites because of her posts and her father's former position in the government of Gaza. Id. ¶ 12. Ms. Saleh and Dr. Khan Suri's family were the subject of multiple articles, and the pair were accused of having "ties to Hamas." Id.
"On March 15, 2025, Secretary of State Marco Rubio issued a memorandum finding that [Dr. Khan] Suri's presence and activities in the United States would have potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences and would compromise a compelling U.S. foreign policy interest." Dkt. 26, Ex. 1, Declaration of Joseph Simon ("First Simon Deel.") ¶ 6. On that same day, a "custody determination [was issued] indicating that [Dr. Khan Suri] would be detained pursuant to" 8 U.S.C. § 1226(a). Id.
Suri was arrested outside his home in mid-March and transported to several different detention facilities in Virginia before ultimately being sent to Texas, by way of Louisiana. After his arrest and during the multiple transfers, Suri's attorney filed a petition for habeas relief in the Eastern District of Virginia (where he resides and where he was initially detained) on March 18, but, as it turned out, Suri had been flown out of Virginia a couple of hours earlier. Thus, the administration contends that jurisdiction is improper in Virginia and moved to dismiss the case. In her May 6 ruling on the motion to dismiss, Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles (appointed by Biden) found that the circumstances of Suri's case justify the application of a narrow exception to the rules of habeas jurisdiction.
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On Wednesday, she issued an order compelling Suri's release from detention in Texas pending his habeas proceedings.
A federal judge on Wednesday ordered the release of Badar Khan Suri, the Georgetown University postdoctoral researcher detained by immigration officials in March for allegedly spreading propaganda in support of Hamas.
Federal Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles issued her order from the bench during a court hearing in Virginia, saying that the government presented no evidence to refute Suri's claims that he was being punished for his views on the war in Gaza.
...
Suri, an Indian national in the U.S. on a student visa, was accused of "actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media," a senior Department of Homeland Security (DHS) official said in a statement in March.
"Suri has close connections to a known or suspected terrorist, who is a senior advisor to Hamas," the DHS statement continued. DHS did not name the suspected terrorist or Hamas advisor.
One infers the "suspected terrorist or Hamas advisor" is Suri's father-in-law, though that is not clear.
In any event, Giles' order provides for Suri's immediate release, provides that he is to reside in Virginia (as he had been), to attend all court hearings in person and participate in his removal proceedings, and is not to be further detained by the government without 48 hours notice to the court and his attorney. The government's motion to stay the ruling was denied.
As with so many of these cases, we'll continue to monitor this one and report on any additional significant developments.
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