Kidney Specialist Dr. Risha Alaweih can no longer call the United States her residence after her return was thwarted despite having a valid H-1B visa. On March 14, the doctor, who had a connection with the Ohio State University from 2018 to 2020, was sent back to her home country, Lebanon. The immigrant paid a two-week visit to her family in Lebanon. However, on arrival at the Boston Logan International Airport, she was detained and returned to her motherland.
Despite a court order that Alaweih’s deportation flight be delayed for 48 hours, federal authorities violated the order, sending the assistant professor at Brown University, Rhode Island, back home. A federal judge has now petitioned the U.S. Customs and Border Officials to answer why they knowingly disobeyed the order.
Per The Colombia Dispatch, court documents reveal the cause of Alaweigh’s deportation was particular content on her cell phone. According to the authorities, a search of the 34-year-old’s phone revealed “sympathetic photos and videos of Hezbollah leaders.” Additionally, more Hezbollah militant pictures were found in the deleted folder of the phone.
Upon discovering the contents, the CHP interrogated the young woman to find her purpose for coming to the United States. However, they concluded that the interrogations could not determine Alaweih’s true intentions.
“As such, CBP canceled her visa and deemed Dr. Alaweih inadmissible to the United States,” the statement further read. The Assistant Commissioner of Public Affairs for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, Hilton Beckham, addressed the situation. In his statement, Beckham explained that the authorities only did their duty.
“Arriving aliens bear the burden of establishing admissibility to the United States,” the statement read. “Our CBP officers adhere to strict protocols to identify and stop threats, using rigorous screening and vetting, strong law enforcement partnerships, and keen inspectional skills to keep threats out of the country.”
The news of the doctor’s unwarranted deportation soon gathered attention from internet users who lashed at the immigration authorities. “Not so pro-life of them,” this user criticized.
Another commenter sarcastically wrote, “We did it! We deported the worst of the worst::checks notes:: a kidney doctor saving lives every day.”
A third netizen shared, “So how many Americans will die because this legal doctor has been sent off to who knows where just because Tarrif Trump felt like it?”
A fourth comment read, “Meanwhile, we don’t have enough doctors in the US. This harms all of us.”
Other organizations call on the government to right its wrongs against the doctor. One of the largest Muslim groups in the U.S., the Council on American-Islamic Relations, urged the administration to readmit Alaweih promptly.
