New York, March 20: Badar Khan Suri, an Indian-origin postdoctoral associate at Georgetown University in the US, was arrested outside his Virginia home on Monday night, March 17, by masked agents and is facing deportation. Suri, who was teaching a class on "Majoritarianism and Minority Rights in South Asia," is accused of "spreading Hamas propaganda" and maintaining "close connections to a known or suspected terrorist."

According to a Georgetown University spokesperson, Badar Khan Suri was initially granted a US visa for doctoral research on peacebuilding in Iraq and Afghanistan. However, Homeland Security officials allege that he actively spread Hamas propaganda and promoted antisemitism on social media. Tricia McLaughlin, Assistant Secretary of the Department of Homeland Security, said that Suri had ties to a senior Hamas advisor, which led to a determination by the Secretary of State on March 15, 2025, that Suri's presence in the US rendered him deportable. Badar Khan Suri Arrested in US: Indian Student at Georgetown University Faces Deportation After ICE Detains Him Over Alleged Hamas Ties.

Who is Badar Khan Suri?

Suri, a postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown’s Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding, earned his PhD in Peace and Conflict Studies from Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi, in 2020. His academic work focused on the complexities of state-building and democracy in ethnically diverse societies, particularly in Afghanistan and Iraq. Badar Khan Suri Arrested: Indian Researcher at US University Held by Immigration Officers, Faces Deportation.

Suri's profile on Georgetown's website has since been made private. His wife, Mapheze Saleh, a first-year student at Georgetown’s Center for Contemporary Arab Studies, is a US citizen and hails from Gaza.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Mar 20, 2025 12:42 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).