Additional Coverage:
- Brown professor and doctor deported to Lebanon ‘without justification’ despite having visa (themirror.com)
A Brown University medical professor and doctor was wrongly deported to Lebanon despite a court order demanding her return to Massachusetts, according to court documents.
Dr. Rasha Alawieh, an assistant professor at Brown, was detained by Customs and Border Protection (CBP) at Boston Logan International Airport for 36 hours after returning from a trip to Lebanon to visit family. She was subsequently deported back to Lebanon this weekend, in direct defiance of a federal judge’s order halting the deportation.
The initial court filing, submitted by a relative, states that Dr. Alawieh, an H-1B visa holder, was detained “without any justification” and was unable to contact legal counsel.
CBP allegedly refused to provide any information regarding her detention or the expedited removal. A federal judge in Massachusetts ruled that Dr.
Alawieh could not be removed from the state without 48 hours’ notice and a valid reason, specifically to allow the court time to review the situation.
Dr. Alawieh’s lawyer confirmed her current presence in Lebanon.
CBP maintains that individuals arriving in the U.S. bear the responsibility of proving their admissibility. In a statement, CBP Assistant Commissioner of Public Affairs, Hilton Beckham, emphasized the agency’s commitment to strict protocols and screening procedures to identify and mitigate threats.
A subsequent court filing alleges that CBP knowingly disregarded the court order and demands Dr. Alawieh’s immediate return to Massachusetts, requesting an urgent hearing on the matter.
Dr. Alawieh, a Lebanese national, secured her H-1B visa through her work at Brown.
Her credentials include a medical degree from the American University of Beirut and residency at the American University of Beirut Medical Center. She has also completed programs at Ohio State University, the University of Washington, and the Yale Waterbury Internal Medicine Program.
The Brown nephrology department expressed distress over the situation, emphasizing the disruption caused by Dr. Alawieh’s absence and the strain on her colleagues covering her responsibilities.