# Supreme Court to rule on cooking as terrorism support

> The justices will decide whether providing meals to a separatist group bars someone from U.S. asylum.
- Title: Supreme Court to rule on cooking as terrorism support
- Summary: The justices will decide whether providing meals to a separatist group bars someone from U.S. asylum. The Supreme Court agreed to hear whether a Nigerian man…
- Keywords: supreme court, asylum, terrorism law, immigration, trump administration, izuchukwu ozurumba, unknown gunmen, nigeria, politics, news, Supreme, Court
- Source: NBC News — https://nbcnews.com/politics/supreme-court/supreme-court-to-weigh-if-cooking-material-support-terrorism-rcna603186
- Author: Lawrence Hurley
- Published: 2026-10-13T13:53:39.479+00:00
- Read time: 1 min
- Topics: supreme court, asylum, terrorism law, immigration, trump administration, izuchukwu ozurumba, unknown gunmen, nigeria, politics, news
## Supreme Court takes asylum case
The Supreme Court agreed on Tuesday to hear the Trump administration's challenge to deny asylum to Izuchukwu Ozurumba, a Nigerian man accused of providing material support to terrorists.
## The job he didn't know about
Ozurumba took a job as a camp cook in two thousand twenty-two, only discovering later that the Unknown Gunmen, a separatist group, ran the camp. He worked there for about six months, half unpaid.
## He fled and sought asylum
After escaping the camp, Ozurumba crossed the southern border in July two thousand twenty-three and sought U.S. asylum, claiming Unknown Gunmen members had threatened to kill him.
## Immigration judge rejected his claim
An immigration judge initially rejected Ozurumba's asylum claim, finding that cooking three meals a day constituted material support to the Unknown Gunmen under immigration law.
## Appeals court reversed the decision
Ozurumba was deported in April two thousand twenty-five, but five months later the Richmond, Virginia-based Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in his favor, saying cooking did not qualify as material support.
## What the court will decide
The Supreme Court will hear arguments and issue a ruling later in the court term, which runs until June. The justices will also decide whether to hear the Trump administration's appeal on broader asylum restrictions.
## Key takeaway

The Supreme Court agreed to hear whether a Nigerian man who cooked for a separatist group can be denied asylum under U.S. terrorism law.