The White Helmets is a Netflix documentary nominated for an Academy Award for Best Documentary, Short Subject. According to the AP, the film’s cinematographer, Khaled Khateeb, will not be permitted to enter the United States to attend the ceremony after authorities found “derogatory information” during his background check.
The AP reports that it reviewed internal documents in which the Department of Homeland Security decided to block the cinematographer from flying to Los Angeles. Khateeb had obtained a visa to enter the US, but had been detained earlier this week in Turkey for unknown reasons. “Derogatory information” is an umbrella term that can “include anything from terror connections to passport irregularities,” according to the news service.
According to documents, Khateeb needed a passport waiver to enter the country, which was not issued. DHS declined to comment on the case to the AP, simply noting that “a valid travel document is required for travel to the United States.”
In a post to Twitter, Khateeb noted that he would not attend the ceremonies “due to intensity of work, our priority is helping our people.”