British political commentator Sami Hamdi has agreed to voluntarily depart the United States after being held in immigration detention for more than two weeks. His detention and subsequent agreement to leave come amidst a U.S. government crackdown on foreign nationals criticizing Israel.
- The Detention: Hamdi, a Muslim political commentator, was arrested by ICE on October 26, 2025, while on a U.S. speaking tour. The U.S. government cited a visa overstay as the official charge, claiming his visa had been revoked by the State Department.
- The Allegations: The Trump administration and Department of Homeland Security publicly accused Hamdi of being an “illegal alien and terrorist sympathizer” for allegedly supporting Hamas’s October 7 attacks. They pointed to remarks where he asked an audience if they felt “euphoria,” though Hamdi later said he intended to suggest the violence was a “natural consequence of the oppression.”
- Supporters’ View: The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), which represented Hamdi, argues his detention was a direct result of his vocal criticism of Israel’s military actions in Gaza. CAIR stated that Hamdi “never should have spent a single night in an ICE cell” and that his voluntary departure was accepted to secure his release, with no conditions preventing him from seeking a U.S. visa in the future.
- Broader Context: Hamdi’s case is part of a wider effort by the administration to identify and expel foreigners who have publicly supported protests against Israel’s operations, actions which civil rights groups have criticized as violations of free speech.
