U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement reportedly arrested an OU professor at Will Rogers International Airport Saturday.
College of International Studies professor Joshua Landis wrote in a Monday post on the social platform X that Vahid Abedini, an Iranian Studies professor, was boarding a flight on his way to attend the Middle East Studies Association in Washington, D.C. Abedini was then detained and placed in jail, according to Landis.
ICE arrested our beloved professor Vahid Abedini.
— Joshua Landis (@joshua_landis) November 24, 2025
He is Farzaneh Family Assistant Prof of Iranian Studies at the University of Oklahoma's @OklahomaU's Boren College of International Studies @oucis
Dr. Abedini was boarding a flight on his way to attend the Middle East Studies… pic.twitter.com/wKctX82py3
Landis wrote in the post that Abedini has an H-1B visa, which is given to immigrants who are temporarily employed in specialty occupations or services of exceptional merit and abilities, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services. Landis wrote that this designation includes higher education faculty.
According to Abedini’s OU profile, he earned his doctorate in political science from Florida International University. Before joining OU, he served as a visiting assistant professor in the department of political science at the University of Arkansas.
Abedini teaches courses on elite politics, development, technology and foreign policy, focusing on the Middle East and Iran, according to his OU profile. According to OU’s course catalog, he is teaching two classes this fall: The Global Politics of Oil and Political Economy of Development. He’s listed to teach one course, Elite Politics in Iran, in spring 2026.
“We are praying for his swift release,” Landis wrote.
Landis told OU Daily in a phone call Monday afternoon Abedini is currently being detained in Oklahoma.
Landis said Abedini is working with a lawyer to resolve the situation, but Landis is unsure how soon he will get a court date.
“We’re waiting for him to get in front of a court. We were hoping (it) would be today, but of course, the lawyers say, ‘Oh, that’ll never happen,’” Landis said. “Because it evidently just takes forever to get a court hearing, so you just languish in jail.”
Landis, who also serves as the co-director of the Center for Middle East Studies, said he helped Abedini with his legal documentation, and believes Abedini has followed all necessary steps to lawfully stay in the country.
“This guy is illegally detained. He's following all the laws. The university has been following the laws. He's been impeccable about doing everything and signing papers, and I was deeply involved in that process,” Landis said. “The university has been extremely diligent in doing its duty.”
Landis said he received an email instructing him to direct all inquiries about Abedini’s detainment to OU Marketing and Communications. OU Marketing and Communications wrote in an email to OU Daily Monday afternoon that it did not have a comment on Abedini’s detainment.
A spokesperson from ICE wrote in an email to OU Daily that it would look into the arrest.
Background
Since President Donald Trump took office in January, he has been vocal about his goal to increase immigration enforcement and border security, including the mass deportation of immigrants lacking permanent legal status.
In July, Congress passed a bill allocating about $170 billion for Trump’s immigration enforcement agenda, including $45 billion for detention centers, $30 billion for additional personnel and maintenance, and $46.5 billion for the southern border wall.
The Department of Homeland Security announced in a press release Oct. 27 that more than 527,000 “illegal aliens” have been deported from the U.S. under the Trump administration. According to the release, roughly 1.6 million others had “voluntarily self-deported.”
KOCO reported in September that deportations in Oklahoma have increased by 70%, from 1,000 deportations filed from January to March to 1,700 in the second quarter of the year. KOSU reported in October that, as of July 28, 1,994 people have been arrested and booked into one of 88 different local detention centers across Oklahoma, and flagged either for or by ICE.
In April, the Trump administration revoked visas of international students across the country. Schools that reported having students with a terminated legal status include Harvard University, Stanford University, the University of Michigan, the University of California at Los Angeles and Ohio State University.
On April 8, The O’Colly, the student newspaper at Oklahoma State University, reported that eight OSU students had their immigration records terminated by the U.S. government. The University of Central Oklahoma confirmed to KOCO on April 8 that four students had their visas revoked.
This story was edited by Anusha Fathepure and Thomas Pablo. Mary Ann Livingood copy edited this story.
