British political commentator Sami Hamdi, known for his outspoken criticism of Israel’s policies, has found himself at the center of an international controversy after being detained by U.S. immigration authorities at San Francisco International Airport on Sunday, October 26, 2025. The arrest, which occurred during Hamdi’s U.S. speaking tour, has sparked heated debate about free speech, the rights of foreign visitors, and the boundaries of national security enforcement under the Trump administration.
Hamdi, a 35-year-old journalist and managing director of International Interest, arrived in the United States on October 19 with a valid visitor visa. According to CNN, he had just spoken at the annual gala for the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) in Sacramento, California, and was scheduled to appear at another CAIR event in Florida the next day. However, on Sunday morning, he was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers at the airport. His visa, which had been revoked on October 24, was cited as the reason for his detention, and he was transferred to an immigration detention facility in McFarland, California, with a court date set for November.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) wasted no time in publicly justifying the move. Spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin stated on social media that Hamdi was being held pending removal, and described him as someone who “cheered on Hamas” after the October 7, 2023, terror attack in Israel. “Under President Trump, those who support terrorism and undermine American national security will not be allowed to work or visit this country. That’s just common sense,” McLaughlin declared, as reported by the Associated Press.
To bolster their case, DHS shared an edited video clip from MEMRI, an advocacy group that monitors Islamist organizations, in which Hamdi appeared to praise aspects of the Hamas attacks. In the video, Hamdi asked, “How many of you felt it in your hearts when you got the news that it happened? How many of you felt the euphoria? Allah Akbar.” However, Hamdi later clarified that his remarks were not intended to celebrate violence but to highlight what he described as “a natural consequence of the oppression that is being put on the Palestinians.” He further stated, “We don't celebrate death and we don't celebrate war.”
Hamdi’s wife, Soumaya, who is based in London with their three children—including a 10-month-old—shared her distress with The Guardian. She said she had only managed to speak to her husband for about 30 seconds since his detention, learning of his arrest through a friend. “We're being kept in the dark,” she remarked, expressing frustration at the lack of communication and support from the UK’s Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. “To hear through a third party that he has been abducted, effectively, by the United States government is incredibly distressing.” She also argued that the video clips shared by authorities were “edited in a way to frame Sami in a horrible light.”
Hamdi’s legal team, led by attorneys from the Council on American-Islamic Relations, swiftly filed a writ of habeas corpus on Wednesday, October 29, demanding that the government justify his detention. They also requested a temporary restraining order to block his removal from the U.S. and to secure a bond hearing. CAIR characterized the government’s actions as “politically motivated abduction” and warned that “if the government can cancel a valid visa because it does not like what a person says, then anyone legally visiting, studying, or working in our country is in danger.”
CAIR-California, which visited Hamdi in detention on October 27, reported that he was “in positive spirits despite his abduction and the ongoing deprivation of his freedom.” The organization emphasized that immigration enforcement “must not be based on bigoted conspiracy theories,” and called for Hamdi’s immediate release. CAIR’s official statement described the detention as “a blatant affront to free speech.”
The Trump administration, for its part, has defended the move as part of a broader effort to identify and expel foreigners accused of fomenting unrest or supporting protests against Israel’s military operations in Gaza. The State Department echoed DHS’s stance, asserting that the United States “has no obligation to host foreigners who support terrorism and actively undermine the safety of Americans.” According to Latin Times, officials have not provided concrete evidence to substantiate the terrorism allegations against Hamdi, relying instead on his public statements and social media activity.
The controversy has drawn in a range of voices from across the political spectrum. Laura Loomer, a conservative activist with close ties to the Trump administration, claimed credit for pressuring authorities to act against Hamdi, labeling him an “individual with Islamic terror ties.” Loomer also called for further action against CAIR, urging the government to revoke its nonprofit status. CAIR, in response, condemned Loomer as an “anti-Muslim extremist” and pointed to her history of inflammatory statements about Islam.
Legal experts and civil liberties advocates have raised alarms about the implications of Hamdi’s detention. The Knight First Amendment Institute noted that a federal judge recently ruled that foreign nationals in the U.S. “have the same free speech rights as the rest of us.” In September, Judge William Young issued a 161-page rebuke of the Trump administration’s efforts to deport non-citizen activists, describing them as a “full-throated assault on the First Amendment.” This ruling is expected to be appealed, but it underscores the growing tension between national security prerogatives and constitutional protections for freedom of expression.
Hamdi’s case is not the first of its kind. In October, Mario Guevara, a Salvadoran journalist who had documented immigration raids, was deported after months in federal custody. Like Hamdi, Guevara was accused of supporting protests and criticizing U.S. policies, raising questions about the consistency and motivations behind such enforcement actions.
For Hamdi’s family, the ordeal is deeply personal. Soumaya Hamdi has been advised not to travel to the U.S., and she worries about the broader implications for anyone who values freedom of speech and political expression. “This doesn't just concern Sami,” she told The Guardian. “It concerns everybody who values freedom of speech, everybody who values freedom of political expression.”
As the legal battle unfolds and the international spotlight remains fixed on his case, Sami Hamdi’s detention continues to fuel debate over the limits of dissent, the rights of foreign visitors, and the future of free speech in a polarized America.
