'Hassan Nasrallah has very high values': Deported doctor had ‘sympathetic photos’ of Hezbollah leaders on her phone
Rasha Alawieh, a Brown University assistant professor and doctor, was deported over the weekend from Boston to Lebanon after federal agents found pictures of former Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah and Iran’s supreme leader on her cell phone.
Despite holding a valid visa and a court order blocking her deportation, she was returned to Paris while re-entering the US, alleging her ties to Hamas. This incident has raised concerns about US Customs and Border Protection's actions and judicial authority.
What Rasha Alawieh told about Hassan Nasrallah?
Alawieh arrived at the Boston airport Thursday and was questioned by CBP officers who searched her phone and would not immediately admit her to the U.S., according to the government’s chronology, according to Politico.
On Thursday, a CBP officer interrogated Alawieh about her views of and potential ties to Hezbollah, a Lebanese political party and religious group that has been designated as a terrorist organization by the US for more than two decades.
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Asked about the photos and videos of Nasrallah and other leaders connected to Hezbollah, Dr Rasha Alawieh said she’s apolitical and had the images because those leaders are revered by many Shia Muslims.
“So I have a lot of Whatsapp groups with families and friends who send them. So I am a Shia Muslim and he is a religious figure. He has a lot of teachings and he is highly regarded in the Shia community,” Alawieh said, according to the transcript filed in court Monday.
“I think if you listen to one of his sermons you would know what I mean. He is a religious, spiritual person, as I said, he has very high