British Muslim journalist Sami Hamdi, who was detained by US federal immigration authorities for more than two weeks, has been released and is expected to be allowed to return to the UK.
The London-based journalist and commentator, who was in the United States on a speaking tour, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) last month while passing through San Francisco International Airport.
Authorities said Mr. Hamdi was being detained for overstaying his U.S. visa. But Muslim advocacy groups claim his visa was canceled without reason or prior notice during his trip. Hamdi’s family believes that his public criticism of Israel’s actions in the Palestinian territories was the real reason behind the decision.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) announced Monday that Hamdi has chosen to accept the U.S. government’s offer to voluntarily deport him.
“The government has agreed to Sami’s release,” Hamdi’s family said in a statement posted on social media on Monday. “By the grace of Allah, he will be able to return home soon.”
Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told CNN that Mr. Hamdi has voluntarily requested his removal from the United States and that ICE is “glad to arrange for his removal from this country” in a statement Monday. McLaughlin characterized Hamdi as an “illegal alien and terrorist sympathizer,” and said, “Under President Trump, those who support terrorism and undermine the national security of the United States will not be allowed to work or visit this country.”
Hamdi remained in custody in California as of Monday afternoon, according to ICE records. He was taken into custody on October 26, a day after speaking at the CAIR Annual Gala in California.
CAIR’s California branch and Mr Hamdi’s lawyer on Monday welcomed the US decision to release the British national.
“This agreement demonstrates that the government does not consider Hamdi a danger to the community or national security,” the statement said.
On Friday, Hamdi’s wife Soumaya said the US government had “no evidence” to justify his detention.
“If they want him out of the country, why not just let him go?” she posted on Instagram. “Why is the US government holding British journalists without charge?”
Hamdi is known for his analysis of the situation in the Middle East and for his appearances on British television. He recently spoke about the U.S.-brokered ceasefire agreement in the Gaza Strip and international plans for the enclave’s postwar governance.
At an event in London in 2023 after Hamas’s Oct. 7 attack, Hamdi called on the audience to “celebrate victory.” But the following year, in a speech hosted by the Islamic Public Affairs Council of Canada, he said, “No one is saying October 7th was right.”
“People are saying that October 7th is a natural result of the oppression being inflicted on the Palestinian people.”
“It’s simple: Sami should never have spent a night in an ICE cell,” CAIR-CA CEO Hassam Ailush said Monday. “His only real ‘crime’ was speaking out about Israel’s genocidal war crimes against the Palestinian people.”
Hamdi is one of the latest pro-Palestinian foreigners to have his visa revoked by the Trump administration. Earlier this year, Momodu Tarr, a graduate student at Cornell University, had his visa revoked and was subject to deportation. The dual British-Gambian citizen accused the Trump administration of targeting him for participating in pro-Palestinian protests amid the Israel-Hamas war. In late March, Tarr announced he was leaving the United States voluntarily.
