A YouTube Prankster Says He Was Kicked Off a Flight for Speaking Arabic

Arab-American YouTube star Adam Saleh claims to have been kicked off a Delta flight from London to New York on Wednesday morning after passengers said they felt "uncomfortable" hearing him speak to his mother in Arabic.

The 23-year-old, who's famous for making prank videos on YouTube, posted a series of tweets and videos of the incident early Wednesday morning that quickly went viral, prompting widespread outrage—and some skepticism that he wasn't telling the whole story.

His most recent prank video showed him pretending to sneak himself to another country in a suitcase, and was quickly dismissed by Australian airline Tigerair as fake. But allegations of prejudice are obviously far more serious. In a statement to BuzzFeed News, Saleh's manager said his most recent video is "as real as it gets," and on Twitter Saleh said he was speaking to his lawyer once he gets to New York.

Delta confirmed to BuzzFeed that "two customers were removed from this flight and later rebooked after a disturbance in the cabin resulted in more than 20 customers expressing their discomfort," adding that the airline was reviewing the incident and it was "taking allegations of discrimination very seriously."

In an interview with CBS News, Saleh said he speaks to his mom on the phone every time he flies. This time, while on the phone with his mother, a woman in the seat in front of him told him to speak English. The video posted to Twitter begins after he was asked to leave the plane—some passengers appear to be on Saleh's side, while others wave goodbye to him sarcastically; one man gives him the finger. "You guys are racists," Saleh says in the video.

We will update this story if and when new information becomes available.