Washington, Oct 9: Kashmiri filmmaker Arfat Sheikh has been released on bond from US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention, where he had been held since September 24, according to a campaign launched by his friends and relatives seeking his release.
News agency Reuters reported that Sheikh was released on Thursday after his bond was granted on Tuesday. However, the deportation proceedings against him are continuing, the campaign said.
Sheikh, an award-winning filmmaker, was detained while arriving at Washington Dulles International Airport after travelling from California, according to the campaign.
He lived in Alexandria, Virginia, and entered the United States in 2019 on a student visa to pursue graduate studies in film at Georgia State University. The campaign said he applied for asylum in 2020 and had a pending immigration application, with authorisation to live and work in the country.
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Sheikh was arrested on September 24, stating that he had entered the country legally on a temporary basis but overstayed his authorised period of admission, reported Reuters.
DHS also said that a pending application does not confer legal immigration status and maintained that Sheikh would receive due process.
Sheikh’s detention comes amid the Trump administration’s broader immigration crackdown and efforts to step up deportations. In August, the administration said it was working to identify and revoke non-immigrant visas of foreign nationals who entered the US as short-term visitors before applying for asylum to remain in the country.
The crackdown has drawn criticism from rights advocates, who have raised concerns about due process, freedom of expression and potential racial profiling.
