US Imposes Visa-Related Sanctions on European Activists in Free Speech Dispute
On December 24, 2025, the US government imposed visa-related sanctions on five Europeans including Imran Ahmed, leader of the Center for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), and Clare Melford, CEO of the Global Disinformation Index (GDI). Ahmed resides in Washington DC.
US Senator Marco Rubio stated that the sanctioned individuals are leading efforts to pressure platforms to censor, demonetise, or suppress American viewpoints. A State Department official, Sarah Rogers, further emphasized that those who foment censorship of American speech are unwelcome on American soil.
The sanctions have drawn criticism from several quarters. Labour MP Chi Onwurah condemned the measures as undermining free speech and called for a broad debate on social media regulation. The GDI described the sanctions as an authoritarian attack on free speech and an act of government censorship.
Meanwhile, the UK government defended its visa rules, but France's President Emmanuel Macron and the European Commission condemned the US measures as intimidation tactics and a threat to European digital sovereignty. Campaigners warned the UK could be next in tech-regulation battles, with concerns linked to the UK’s Online Safety Act and ongoing discussions between Ofcom and the US State Department.
These developments come amid ongoing tensions between Elon Musk and the CCDH, as well as the European Union’s actions under the Digital Services Act that affect platforms such as X.
