British commentator who has criticized Israel detained at San Francisco airport

San Francisco — Immigration authorities at San Francisco International Airport detained a prominent British journalist and political commentator over the weekend while he was on a speaking tour in the United States, authorities said.

A federal spokesperson accused Sam Hamdi of “support(ing) terrorism and undermin(ing) American national security” without evidence.

Hamdi, a critic of Israel’s actions in Gaza, was detained Sunday morning, the Council for American-Islamic Relations said in a statement hours later. The U.S. Department of Homeland Security also confirmed the detainment.

CAIR, an American Muslim civil rights organization, added that it believes the detainment occurred because of Hamdi’s criticism of Israel. In its statement, the organization referred to the detainment as an a