An Indian scholar working at a well-known US university has been arrested and is now scheduled to be deported for suspected links to Hamas. US officials said the scholar is married to the daughter of Ahmed Yousef, who is well known as a senior political adviser to Hamas, and is listed as a terrorist group by the United States and several other nations.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials arrested the researcher after an internal probe allegedly found undisclosed affiliations that were of national security concern. The researcher, whose identity has not been made public, is charged with breaching conditions of his visa and failing to report ties that officials say potentially threatened.
University officials were shocked at the turn of events and corroborated cooperation with federal authorities. The legal team of the detainee has labeled the arrest “an overreach,” claiming that family connections by themselves do not qualify as reasons for deportation.
The Department of Homeland Security is likely to open formal deportation proceedings in the coming weeks, subject to further legal scrutiny.
