Trump Administration Seeks to Deport Hate Speech Researcher Previously Sued by X

A federal judge has temporarily blocked the Trump administration from arresting or deporting Imran Ahmed, the chief executive of the Centre for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH).

According to The New York Times, Ahmed is one of five researchers and regulators whose work examining online abuse and disinformation has drawn scrutiny from the U.S. State Department. The department announced this week that the individuals are barred from entering the United States.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio characterized those targeted as “radical activists and weaponized NGOs,” accusing them of leading “organized efforts to coerce American platforms to censor, demonetize, and suppress American viewpoints they oppose.”

Although Ahmed was born in the United Kingdom, he holds a U.S. green card and lives in the United States. He is married to an American citizen and has a child who is also a U.S. citizen.

In an interview with PBS News, Ahmed defended his work. He criticized the government’s actions, calling them “another example of these companies — such as Meta, OpenAI, and Elon Musk’s X — trying to avoid responsibility by using their significant financial resources to influence politics.”

X previously filed a lawsuit against CCDH, which was dismissed last year. However, an appeal in that case remains ongoing.