British journalist and political commentator Sami Hamdi found himself at the center of a transatlantic controversy this past weekend after being detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at San Francisco International Airport. The incident, which unfolded on Sunday, October 26, 2025, has sparked a fierce debate over free speech, national security, and the boundaries of political dissent in America.
Hamdi, known for his vocal criticism of Israel and the ongoing war in Gaza, had just concluded a speaking engagement at the annual gala for the Sacramento chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) the night before. According to ABC7 News and the Associated Press, Hamdi was en route to Florida to speak at another CAIR event when ICE officers detained him at the airport. His visa had been revoked by the State Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs just two days earlier, on October 24, 2025, a move that officials say was effective immediately.
Federal authorities wasted little time in justifying their actions. Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), announced on social media platform X that Hamdi was in ICE custody pending removal from the country. She echoed the administration’s hardline stance: “Under President Trump, those who support terrorism and undermine American national security will not be allowed to work or visit this country.” The State Department added in a separate statement, “The United States has no obligation to host foreigners who support terrorism and actively undermine the safety of Americans. We continue to revoke the visas of persons engaged in such activity.”
But the specifics of what Hamdi had allegedly done to warrant such drastic action remained murky. A senior U.S. official, speaking anonymously to the Associated Press, linked Hamdi’s detention to comments he made about the Middle East. Critics have accused Hamdi of praising the October 7, 2023, Hamas attacks on Israel—a charge he has repeatedly denied. In a February 2024 speech hosted by the Canadian Muslim Public Affairs Council, Hamdi clarified his stance: “No one is saying Oct. 7 was right. People are saying Oct. 7 was a natural consequence of the oppression that is being put on the Palestinians.”
Hamdi’s arrest comes amid a broader crackdown by the Trump administration on foreign nationals perceived to have fomented unrest or supported protests against Israel’s military actions in Gaza. According to the Associated Press, the administration has denied visas to applicants with social media histories critical of U.S. or Israeli policies, expelled South Africa’s ambassador to the United States, revoked the visa of Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas ahead of the U.N. General Assembly, and even yanked the visas of British punk-rap duo Bob Vylan. The State Department has indicated it is reviewing the status of more than 55 million current U.S. visa holders for potential violations of its standards.
The reaction from civil rights groups was swift and scathing. CAIR, the nation’s largest Muslim advocacy organization, called Hamdi’s detention a violation of First Amendment protections. “He was, as we say, abducted at SFO, and we believe he was taken—as far as we know—to a detention center in Bakersfield,” said Reshad Noorzay, executive director of CAIR’s Sacramento Valley Central Valley office, to ABC7 News. “We see it as a clear violation of First Amendment protections. You know, federal authorities here detained him at the behest of an anti-Muslim extremist individual, Laura Loomer, and a group that had been advocating for his detention and for the revoking of his visa on baseless claims.”
CAIR’s statement on Hamdi’s detention did not mince words: “Our nation must stop abducting critics of the Israeli government at the behest of unhinged Israel First bigots. This is an Israel First policy, not an America First policy, and it must end.” The organization’s legal team is actively working to secure Hamdi’s release, maintaining that the charges against him are politically motivated and amount to an attack on constitutionally protected speech.
Far-right activist and Trump ally Laura Loomer played a notable role in the controversy, having posted a series of accusations against Hamdi on social media. CAIR dismissed these as “anti-Muslim conspiracy theories,” while supporters of the administration argued that national security concerns must take precedence in the current climate.
Legal experts have drawn historical parallels to darker chapters in American history. William Gould, emeritus law professor at Stanford Law School, told ABC7 News, “What it says is that the current climate is very much like the terrible McCarthy period that we went through in this country in the 1950s, where positions held by those who held dissenting views were suppressed, and where sanctions were employed against them. The threat is even greater than it was in the period of McCarthy, because now we see the executive office now repressing free speech. This should never be tolerated in a free society, here as well as elsewhere.”
This is not the first time that critics of U.S. and Israeli policy have faced immigration-related reprisals. In March, Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University graduate and pro-Palestinian activist, was arrested and threatened with deportation—a case that remains ongoing. Attorney Marc Van Der Hout, who represents Khalil, sees Hamdi’s case as part of a troubling trend. “I think this is the latest attempt by this administration to silence people who want to speak out against what this administration is doing in Israel and what the Israeli government is doing in Gaza. This has to stop, because it’s purely protected First Amendment right speech that people are being harassed for and being imprisoned for now,” Van Der Hout argued to ABC7 News.
Hamdi, who manages The International Interest, a risk and intelligence consulting group, has previously had speaking engagements in Canada canceled and is no stranger to controversy over his outspoken views. His detention has drawn the attention of the British Foreign Office, which confirmed to the Associated Press that it is “in contact with the family of a British man detained in the U.S.A. and are in touch with the local authorities.”
As of Monday, Hamdi remained in ICE custody, with his future in the United States uncertain. The case has become a flashpoint in the ongoing debate over the limits of free speech, the reach of executive power, and the rights of non-citizens to voice dissent within America’s borders. Whether Hamdi’s removal will proceed or his advocates will succeed in challenging the government’s actions remains to be seen, but the story has already left an indelible mark on the national conversation about dissent and democracy.
