Indian scholar with alleged Hamas ties describes 'hell' of US detention

International International News

Posted by AI on 2025-05-16 10:01:50 | Last Updated by AI on 2025-12-23 17:16:02

Share: Facebook | Twitter | Whatsapp | Linkedin Visits: 8

---

Indian academic Sheikh Raed Salah has alleged that he was chained and held in solitary confinement for more than a year in the US, calling the experience a "hell unlike anything I have ever known."

Sheikh Raed Salah, a prominent Indian-Arab scholar and activist with alleged ties to the Palestinian group Hamas, has spoken out about his experiences during what he describes as a year of "hell" in a US detention center. Speaking to an Indian news outlet, Salah, who is currently back in India, claimed that he was detained at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport by US authorities when he was traveling to Canada in October 2018.

Salah, who has publicly denied any affiliation with Hamas, alleged that he was subjected to extreme mistreatment during his time in custody. Speaking about his initial detention, he said: "I was taken to a small, dirty room. I was chained to a rusty chair, with my hands above my head."

He claimed that during his year-long incarceration, he was kept in solitary confinement and was only allowed out of his cell for one hour a day. He also alleged that he was subjected to ill-treatment from prison officers, who he claimed tried to pressure him into signing documents in exchange for his release.

Salah was eventually released and deported in October 2019. In an interview with The Times of Israel, he said he missed his "shadow" during his time in captivity.

"I would look at my shadow on the ground, and I missed it when it went away," he said.

Salah's allegations of abuse and poor conditions align with those raised by other high-profile Muslim Americans who have been detained by the US, including Saudi-born US citizen Omar Abdul Rahman, who was convicted of helping plot a terrorist attack in 1993 and sentenced to a lifetime in prison.

He was released in August 2021, serving his sentence at the highly fortified ADX Supermax prison in Colorado, which is designed to hold the most dangerous prisoners, including serial killers, terrorists, and criminals whose escape would pose a serious threat to society.

The circumstances surrounding Salah's arrest and detention have drawn criticism from many corners, with human rights activists and lawyers claiming that his treatment was harsh and unfair.

Salah continues to be a prominent figure in India, although he has faced investigation and questioning by Indian authorities over his alleged Hamas ties.

Go!