Trump Admin Urged To Deport World Cup Reporter Accused Of Glorifying Terrorists

A foreign reporter with a history of praising Palestinian terrorism is roaming the United States for the World Cup, prompting one legal group to push the Trump administration to revoke his visa and deport him.

Ibrahim Khadra, a British national and beIN Sports broadcaster, has posted on social media in recent days indicating that he’s in the United States. In one post from June 7, Khadra wrote that he was awaiting the arrival of the Algerian soccer team at the airport in Kansas City, indicating that he’s in the country to cover the World Cup.

In a June 8 letter, the Lawfare Project asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio to revoke Khadra’s visa for his “glorifying the terrorist activities of Hamas and Hezbollah, both designated Foreign Terrorist Organizations.”

“Your Department has exercised exactly this authority in comparable cases. The same authority should be applied here to a foreign national who has celebrated the slaughter of civilians and presents, based upon his prior documented conduct, a concrete risk of converting a World Cup credential into a platform for terrorist glorification on American soil,” the letter read.

“We urge the Department to act before that platform is furnished,” it added.

Khadra’s past statements of terrorist support include an X post he made the day of Hamas’ attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, saying “scored goals that pierced the enemy’s net, crossed its borders and soldiers, and caught it by surprise from where it least expected.”

“O God, protect our people in proud Gaza and throughout #Palestine. God is Greatest, and praise be to God,” he wrote.

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On the first anniversary of the October 7 massacre, Khadra wrote that “the hypocritical leaders in Europe and the United States repeated the same lies, expressing sympathy for the victims of a single day of resistance, while conveniently ignoring 365 days of far greater brutality and terror, during which countless more lives were lost and affected,” adding “They lack the true values of humanity we hold #shame #FreePalestine.”

Khadra posted a picture of late Hamas founder Ahmed Yassin in May 2021 with the caption “Good news foretold by the Sheikh of the Mujahideen, Ahmed Yassin, may God have mercy on him, more than 20 years ago.”

“I ask God to hasten the end of oppression and occupation from the land of pride and dignity, Palestine,” he wrote.

He also shared his “condolences” after the assassination of senior Hamas official Ismail Haniyeh in a July 2024 X post.

The organization also wrote to Homeland Security officials asking them to initiate removal proceedings against Khadra, making him amenable to deportation from the United States.

“This referral follows a recognized and recently exercised enforcement sequence: the Department of State revokes a nonimmigrant visa on terrorism-related grounds, the visa holder’s lawful basis for presence is extinguished, and ICE may detain and place the individual in removal proceedings,” the Lawfare Project wrote.

“Mr. Khadra’s documented pattern of glorifying Hamas and Hezbollah terrorists, while exploiting U.S.-hosted international sporting events, poses a direct risk to public safety and to U.S. counterterrorism policy,” the group added.

Gerard Filitti, Senior Counsel with The Lawfare Project who signed the referrals, told The Daily Wire that the case exposes “a systemic flaw with our immigration screening process that the Trump administration has very appropriately put additional emphasis on screening visa applicants from a lot of countries, but when it comes to traditionally allied nations or friendly nations like the UK or the European Union, perhaps that’s a back door that’s being exploited.”

A State Department spokesperson said they couldn’t comment on “specific cases due to visa record confidentiality,” but said the country “is well prepared to welcome legitimate travelers from around the globe for the largest and greatest FIFA World Cup in history.”

“At the same time, the Administration will not waver in upholding U.S. law and the highest standards of national security and public safety in the conduct of our visa process,” the spokesperson said.

In one recent action, federal authorities blocked the entrance of a Somali World Cup referee because he associated with “suspected members of terror organizations.”

U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) denied Omar Artan’s entry after he landed at Miami International Airport from Istanbul on Saturday after discovering “derogatory information,” including his “association with suspected members of terror organizations,” a senior administration official recently told The Daily Wire.

The spokesperson added that the department adjudicates “each visa application on a case-by-case basis after rigorous review and thorough vetting to determine whether the individual is eligible under U.S. law.”

“Vetting is a continuous process, and applicants are vetted before, during, and after consular adjudication. After issuance of a visa, if the Department becomes aware of new, potentially adverse information, a consular officer reviews that information to determine whether the applicant remains eligible for a visa,” the spokesperson said.

Khadra didn’t respond to multiple requests for comment.