Hamdi’s lawyers say he was detained for his pro-Palestinian views and only accused of overstaying his visa after it was revoked without warning.
British journalist and pro-Palestine commentator Sami Hamdi is set to return home more than two weeks after he was imprisoned by US immigration authorities, his wife and legal representatives said on Monday.
Hamdi, 35, was stopped at San Francisco international airport in California on October 26, and detained by agents from the Department of Homeland Security’s Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency mid-way through a speaking tour discussing Israel’s war on Gaza.
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Hassan M Ahmad, a lawyer from the California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-CA), and the Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA) said in a statement on Monday that the journalist and commentator was punished for his criticism of Israel during his US speaking tour and not for any alleged wrongdoing.
“It is this simple: Sami never should have spent a single night in an ICE cell,” Hussam Ayloush, the CEO of CAIR’s California chapter, said in a statement.
“His only real ‘offense’ was speaking clearly about Israel’s genocidal war crimes against Palestinians.”
“The immigration charging document filed in his case alleged only a visa overstay—after the government revoked his visa without cause and without prior notice—and never identified any criminal conduct or security grounds,” Hamdi’s legal representatives said in the joint statement.
Hamdi’s wife, Soumaya Hamdi, welcomed the news in a series of posts on social media, saying, “Sami is coming home, alhamdullilah. Elated doesn’t begin to describe the feeling.”
She also expressed her “heartfelt gratitude” to the “countless wonderful people” who offered assistance during her husband’s detention.
A number of institutions raised concerns about Hamdi’s treatment, including his former university, the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London, and freedom of expression organisation PEN America.
By contrast, some people openly advocated for Hamdi to be detained, including far-right activist and Donald Trump ally Laura Loomer, who celebrated Hamdi’s detention and repeatedly claimed he was going to be deported, without citing her sources.
Loomer, a self-described “proud Islamophobe”, also accused Hamdi of supporting Islamic terrorism, without providing any evidence.
Responding to allegations about his son, Hamdi’s father, Mohamed El-Hachmi Hamdi, said in a post on X that he “has no affiliation” with any political or religious group.
“His stance on Palestine is not aligned with any faction there, but rather, with the people’s right to security, peace, freedom and dignity. He is, quite simply, one of the young dreamers of this generation, yearning for a world with more compassion, justice, and solidarity,” he added.
The administration of US President Donald Trump has targeted a number of pro-Palestinian advocates, even as it has also worked to mediate a precarious truce agreement between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
Those targeted include Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian former student of Columbia University. who continues to face challenges to his US immigration status after being freed from detention in June.
Israel’s war on Gaza has killed at least 68,875 Palestinians and wounded 170,679 since October 2023, in what an independent United Nations commission of inquiry and multiple human rights organisations have labelled as a genocide.
