WASHINGTON — A US judge on Thursday temporarily blocked the detention of British social media campaigner Imran Ahmed, who sued the US government over having his visa removed.

Washington imposed visa bans on Tuesday on Ahmed and four Europeans, including French former EU commissioner Thierry Breton. It accused them of working to censor freedom of speech or unfairly target US tech giants with burdensome regulation. Ahmed lives in New York and is believed to be the only of the five currently in the country.

The move brought a backlash from European leaders defending the work of organizations monitoring online content.

Ahmed, 47, a US permanent resident and founder of the US-based Center for Countering Digital Hate, argued that his detention and possible deportation would tear him away from his American wife and child.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio had said online that the individuals were blocked over concerns that they had organised efforts to pressure US platforms to censor and "punish American viewpoints they oppose".

Ahmed filed a legal complaint on Wednesday against officials including Rubio and US Attorney General Pamela Bondi over the decision to have him sanctioned.

In court documents seen by the BBC, US District Judge Vernon S Broderick said on Thursday he had granted Ahmed's request for a temporary restraining order.

The judge also temporarily blocked the officials from detaining Ahmed without the chance for his case to be heard.

When approached by AFP news agency, a state department spokesperson was quoted as saying: "The Supreme Court and Congress have repeatedly made clear: the United States is under no obligation to allow foreign aliens to come to our country or reside here."

Ahmed said: "I will not be bullied away from my life's work of fighting to keep children safe from social media's harm and stopping antisemitism online."

His lawyer, Roberta Kaplan, said the speed of the judge's decision was telling.

"The federal government can't deport a green card holder like Imran Ahmed, with a wife and young child who are American, simply because it doesn't like what he has to say," she said.

In 2023, Ahmed's center was sued by Elon Musk's social media company after it reported on a rise in hate speech on the platform since the billionaire's takeover of the firm, now called X.

The case was dismissed but an appeal is pending. — Agencies