Biography
Badar Khan Suri is an Indian researcher and scholar at Georgetown University who was detained by U.S. immigration authorities in March 2025 after his student visa was revoked. Immigration officials did not bring criminal charges against Suri, but alleged that he had engaged in “spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism,” claims that he, his attorney, and supporters strongly disputed, noting that his social media posts criticized U.S. foreign policy and expressed support for humanitarian principles without evidence of extremist activity.
Suri’s lawyer argued that he was targeted partly because his U.S. citizen wife is of Palestinian heritage. After being held in Texas, a federal judge ordered his release from ICE custody in May 2025, though the government sought to appeal that order. Suri described his detention conditions as harsh and degrading, saying he was denied appropriate food and proper sleeping arrangements during his time in custody.
The October 14, 2025 UN allegation letter records Suri’s March 17, 2025 arrest, transfers through Virginia and Texas, and actual May 14 release. The transfers do not create additional custody periods, and release did not itself terminate removal proceedings. The letter sought clarification of allegations rather than deciding their merits. Source: https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadPublicCommunicationFile?gId=30402#page=10
