Chilling sign: Friends react to ICE kidnapping of Iranian scholar Vahid Abedinien en route to MESA conference

Friends of Vahid Abedini, an Iranian scholar who was detained at the airport in Oklahoma en route to the annual Middle East Studies Association conference, are relieved by his release. However, they see it as a chilling sign.

Abedini, a professor at the University of Oklahoma, was arrested on Saturday by Immigration and Customs Enforcement at the airport and held for three days without charges or clear information on his whereabouts. He was released three days later, after being held for what the Department of Homeland Security described as "standard questioning".

"We were all waiting for Vahid to arrive at MESA, and all of a sudden I got a text from my colleague that he was arrested by ICE," Shirin Saeidi, associate professor of political science and director of the King Fahd Centre for Middle East Studies at the University of Arkansas, told The New Arab. "I wasn't necessarily surprised, but I was incredibly angry."

Abedini's arrest and detention come amid an intensified crackdown on immigrants, most of them with no criminal background. This includes academics who have been active in protesting US support of Israel's genocide of Gaza.

Some crackdowns on Iranians who have not necessarily been politically active appear to be related to their nationality. So far, most ICE detentions of academics have targeted politically active students rather than professors.

"When DHS put out their statement, they stressed the Iranian nationality. This Iranian national, because everything flows from that," Joshua Landis, director of the Centre for Middle East Studies at the University of Oklahoma, told TNA.

"This Iranian national was detained for standard questioning. He's been released," OU Daily, University of Oklahoma’s student newspaper, quoted the Department of Homeland Security as saying.

Landis said that two state lawmakers, Jacob Rosecrants and Jared Deck, both Democrats, had called him to ask how they could help. Otherwise, he saw little other outreach from those in positions of authority, something he attributes to fear.

"The fear factor is large. It affects everybody—universities, politicians, faculty members. People are worried about getting in trouble," he said. 

"Iranians have to worry about Iran. Many of them like to travel to Iran and see family and friends. They're trained to be anxious because they're not used to having freedom. They came to the US for freedom, and now they're frightened by American politics," he said.

News of Abedini's detention quickly sparked an internal debate over whether to publicise his case. Some were concerned that speaking out publicly could make him more vulnerable. Others worried that keeping it private would prolong his detention and isolation.

"Some people wanted to keep it out of the media," said Saeidi. "Since it was a very public act—he was kidnapped on his way to a scholarly conference—it required a collective response."

Saeidi says that, in some ways, they were fortunate that it happened in the context of MESA because scholars who had experienced similar incidents were already gathered and could discuss how best to support their friend.

"We started mobilising at MESA. Part of that was convincing people to let the media know. I don't think silence will protect us," she said. "I know it's scary. The first instinct is to negotiate, but the media is here to protect democracy."

Saeidi, who is originally from Iran and is long-established in the US, says she wants to see more academics speaking on behalf of people like Abedini without permanent status.

“I’m making a plea for more senior academics to show up and protect others,” she said. “Otherwise, we are going to lose one of the greatest things about the US, which is freedom of speech.”