A British anti-disinformation campaigner close to Keir Starmer’s chief of staff has launched a legal challenge against the Trump administration after being told he could face deportation from the US in a row over freedom of speech.

Imran Ahmed, the chief executive of the Centre for Countering Digital Hate (CCDH), has filed a complaint against senior Trump allies including the secretary of state, Marco Rubio, and the attorney general, Pam Bondi, in an attempt to prevent what he says would be an unconstitutional arrest and removal.

The court filing, lodged in the southern district of New York, claims Ahmed is being targeted over his organisation’s work scrutinising social media companies – including Elon Musk’s X – in violation of his first amendment rights.

It also argues there is no credible basis for the detention and expulsion of Ahmed, who lives lawfully in Washington DC with his American wife and child, and is a friend of No 10 chief of staff Morgan McSweeney.

The CCDH has previously incurred the wrath of Musk over reports chronicling the rise of racist, antisemitic and extremist content on X since he took over the platform. Musk tried unsuccessfully to sue the organisation last year before calling it a “criminal organisation”.

Ahmed is one of five Europeans targeted by the US state department in the past week. They have been accused of leading efforts to pressure technology firms to censor or suppress American viewpoints.

Rubio accused the five – who also include the former EU commissioner Thierry Breton – of leading “organised efforts to coerce American platforms to censor, demonetise and suppress American viewpoints they oppose”.

Sarah Rogers, an official at the state department, posted on X: “Our message is clear: if you spend your career fomenting censorship of American speech, you’re unwelcome on American soil.”

The sanctions are being seen as the latest attack on European regulations that target hate speech and misinformation. Campaigners in the UK have warned the British government could be targeted further if the Trump administration steps up its attacks on tech regulation.

In a statement, Ahmed said: “My life’s work is to protect children from the dangers of unregulated social media and AI and fight the spread of antisemitism online. That mission has pitted me against big tech executives – and Elon Musk in particular – multiple times.

“I am proud to call the United States my home. My wife and daughter are American, and instead of spending Christmas with them, I am fighting to prevent my unlawful deportation from my home country.”

Roberta Kaplan, Ahmed’s legal counsel, added: “The state department’s actions here are unjustified and blatantly unconstitutional.

“Imran is proud to call the United States his home. Instead of spending Christmas with his wife and child, he has been forced to spend the holiday fighting to prevent his unlawful deportation. It is hard to think of anything more un-American than that.”

Ahmed was sanctioned alongside UK-based Clare Melford, who runs the Global Disinformation Index (GDI). Musk has also called for the GDI to be shut down over its criticism of rightwing websites for spreading disinformation.

A British government spokesperson said: “While every country has the right to set its own visa rules, we support the laws and institutions which are working to keep the internet free from the most harmful content.”