British political commentator Sami Hamdi detained by federal authorities at California airport

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Sami Hamdi, a British political commentator, was being held Monday by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement after he was detained by ICE officers at San Francisco International Airport, according to federal officials. One senior U.S. official said the detention was related to comments he has made about the Middle East.

Hamdi, who is Muslim, was on a speaking tour in the U.S. and on Saturday had addressed the annual gala for the Sacramento, California, chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR.

“Earlier this morning, ICE agents abducted British Muslim journalist and political commentator Sami Hamdi at San Francisco Airport, apparently in response to his vocal criticism of the Israeli government during his ongoing speaking tour,” CAIR said in a Sunday social media post.

The detention is the latest in the Trump administration’s ramped up efforts to identify and potentially expel thousands of foreigners in the United States who it says have either fomented or participated in unrest or publicly supported protests against Israel’s military operations in Gaza. The administration has also denied visas to applicants whose social media histories have been critical of its policies.

Those actions have been criticized by civil rights groups as violations of constitutional protections for freedom of speech, which apply to anyone in the United States and not just to American citizens.

It was not immediately clear what specific comments triggered Hamdi’s detention.

CAIR, the nation’s largest Muslim advocacy organization, called for Hamdi’s immediate release. The group said Hamdi, 35, has not been deported and remains in U.S. custody.

After being alerted to his past and current statements related to the Middle East, a decision to revoke Hamdi’s visa was made on Friday, according to the senior U.S. official. The official did not specify what comments.

The official also said Hamdi was traveling in the United States on a visitor visa and not under the Visa Waiver Program, which he may have been eligible for as a British citizen.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss internal deliberations, could not speak to why it had taken several days to locate and detain him.

Hamdi, a political commentator who often speaks out against Israel and the war in Gaza, is described on his LinkedIn profile as managing director of The International Interest, a risk and intelligence consulting group. It did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

U.S. Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin indicated on social media Sunday that Hamdi’s “visa was revoked and he is in ICE custody pending removal.” ICE said in a statement that Hamdi entered the U.S. on Oct. 19 on a visitor visa.

“The State Department’s Bureau of Consular Affairs revoked Hamdi’s visa Oct. 24, 2025, effective immediately. ICE detained Hamdi, as he was illegally in the country, and he will be placed in immigration proceedings,” ICE said.

In response to questions Monday about his case, Homeland Security sent a link to a State Department post on X Sunday thanking DHS for their efforts to remove Hamdi.

The State Department statement did not specifically say what Hamdi had said or done that initiated the revocation but said: “The United States has no obligation to host foreigners” whom the administration deems to “support terrorism and actively undermine the safety of Americans. We continue to revoke the visas of persons engaged in such activity.”

Critics accuse Hamdi of praising Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023 attacks in comments he made in a video posted online shortly after the war in Gaza erupted. He has denied that, saying he wasn’t celebrating violence.

“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,” he said in a February 2024 speech to the Canadian Muslim Public Affairs Council.

Britain’s Foreign Office said it was “in contact with the family of a British man detained in the U.S.A. and are in touch with the local authorities.”

Hamdi was scheduled to speak at a CAIR event in Florida on Sunday.

As part of its intensifying enforcement efforts, the administration has expelled South Africa’s ambassador to the United States for comments critical of President Donald Trump, revoked a visa for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas to attend the U.N. General Assembly and yanked the visas for British punk-rap duo Bob Vylan. It said it is reviewing the status of the more than 55 million current U.S. visa holders for potential violations of its standards.

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Lee and Santana reported from Washington.