A British ally of Keir Starmer‘s chief of staff has been granted a temporary Christmas reprieve against his deportation from the US after Donald Trump’s Government revoked his visa for allegedly threatening American free speech.

Imran Ahmed faces being forced out of America despite being a lawful permanent resident because of his work running the Centre for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), his lawyers say.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio revoked the visas of Mr Ahmed and four other people who combat disinformation online because they allegedly seek to ‘coerce American platforms to punish American viewpoints they oppose’, he said.

The move has been roundly condemned by the European Union – whose former top tech regulator is among those sanctioned – and top political figures, escalating transatlantic tensions with President Donald Trump.

The CCDH, a registered US charity, has been a vocal critic of figures including Elon Musk and US Health Secretary Robert F Kennedy Jr for, it claims, failing to prevent or even contributing towards the spread of misinformation online.

Lawyers acting for Mr Ahmed, who lives in Washington DC, filed a complaint against the US Government in the Southern District of New York on Christmas Eve.

In the 31-page document, they argue that authorities have no reason to remove him from the US, where he lives with his American wife and young child.

The complaint, seen by the Daily Mail, reads: ‘Rather than disguise its retaliatory motive, the federal government was clear that Mr. Ahmed is being ‘SANCTIONED’ as punishment for the research and public reporting (his organisation) carried out.

‘In other words, Mr. Ahmed faces the imminent prospect of unconstitutional arrest, punitive detention, and expulsion for exercising his basic First Amendment rights.’

Mr Ahmed has been granted a temporary reprieve by United States District Judge Vernon S Broderick on Christmas Day, who granted a temporary restraining order banning authorities from arresting or detaining him.

A case management hearing will be heard by telephone on Monday December 29.

In a statement issued today, Mr Ahmed said: ‘America is a great nation built on laws, with checks and balances to ensure power can never attain the unfettered primacy that leads to tyranny. 

‘The law, clear-eyed in understanding right and wrong, will stand in the way of those who seek to silence the truth and empower the bold who stand up to power. 

‘I believe in this system, and I am proud to call this country my home. I will not be bullied away from my life’s work of fighting to keep children safe from social media’s harm and stopping antisemitism online. Onward.’

However, a State Department spokesperson remained firm today, telling the Mail: ‘The Supreme Court and Congress have repeatedly made clear: the United States is under no obligation to allow foreign aliens to come to our country or reside here.’

The complaint names several government figures as defendants including Mr Rubio, Under Secretary of State for Public Diplomacy Sarah B Rogers, Attorney General Pam Bondi and Secretary for Homeland Security Kristi Noem.

Also named are Todd M Lyons, acting director of US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Judith Almodovar, acting field office director of New York ICE. 

Roberta Kaplan, legal counsel for the campaigner, said: ‘That was fast. Judge Broderick granted our request for a temporary restraining order so quickly because it is so obvious that Marco Rubio and the other defendants’ actions were blatantly unconstitutional. 

‘Americans should be grateful for our clients’ courageous work to combat antisemitism, racism, as well as efforts to harm young children on social media.

‘The federal government can’t deport a green card holder like Imran Ahmed, with a wife and young child who are American, simply because it doesn’t like what he has to say. We look forward to the hearing before the Court on Monday.’

The CCDH was a strong supporter of the UK’s Online Safety Act, which has faced staunch opposition in the US, and has pressured advertisers not to spend money on social media platforms it says are responsible for hateful and harmful content.

It also named RFK Jr as one of its ‘disinformation dozen’ responsible for spreading the majority of misinformation about the Covid vaccine in the early days of the pandemic, and allegedly listed ‘kill Musk’s Twitter’ as a priority in a leaked report.

The CCDH was sued by Elon Musk, owner of X (formerly Twitter), after it published a report claiming he had overseen a rise in hate speech on the platform since purchasing it for $44billion three years ago. The lawsuit was thrown out in March 2024, pending an appeal.

Musk said the moves to expel Mr Ahmed, and to ban four others from entering the US, ‘great news’ in a post on X.

The Manchester-born, Cambridge-educated political strategist founded the CCDH after noticing a rise in antisemitism online and in the wake of the murder of Labour MP Jo Cox. 

Prior to this he worked for Labour, serving two MPs and Angela Eagle in her leadership campaign; Keir Starmer’s chief of staff Morgan McSweeney served as a director in the CCDH until Sir Keir became party leader in April 2020.

The Daily Mail has contacted the US Department of State for further comment. 

Also among those sanctioned was Thierry Breton, formerly the EU’s top tech regulator, whom the State Department described as the ‘mastermind’ of Europe’s Digital Services Act.

The Act grants it the power to fine social media firms over illegal content such as hate speech and child sexual abuse material.

But it has enraged the Trump administration, which claims the EU has imposed ‘undue’ restrictions on free expression while unfairly targeting US firms and citizens.

Tensions intensified earlier this month when Brussels fined Elon Musk’s X platform €120million over its ‘deceptive’ verification check marks.

Musk and Breton have repeatedly clashed online over EU regulation, with Musk branding him the ‘tyrant of Europe’.

French President Emmanuel Macron entered the row yesterday, confirming he had spoken with Breton and praised his work.

‘We will not give up, and we will protect Europe’s independence and the freedom of Europeans,’ Macron said on X.

A European Commission spokesperson said it ‘strongly condemns the US decision’ and that the EU would be demanding an explanation from Washington, warning that it could ‘respond swiftly and decisively’ to the ‘unjustified measures’.

Anna-Lena von Hodenberg and Josephine Ballon of the German non-profit HateAid and Clare Melford, co-founder of the Global Disinformation Index, have also been sanctioned by the Department of State.

Marco Rubio said of the plan to ban the five individuals from the US: ‘For far too long, ideologues in Europe have led organised efforts to coerce American platforms to punish American viewpoints they oppose.

‘The Trump administration will no longer tolerate these egregious acts of extraterritorial censorship.’