Judge Blocks Deportation of Palestinian Activist at Columbia (1)

A US judge temporarily blocked the deportation of a Palestinian graduate student at Columbia University who was arrested over the weekend after he led anti-Israel protests at the Ivy League campus.

Mahmoud Khalil is challenging his arrest in federal court, arguing it was an unlawful government retaliation for his “constitutionally protected peaceful advocacy,” according to filings by his attorneys in New York federal court.

US District Judge Jesse Furman on Monday said Khalil “shall not be removed from the United States unless and until the court orders otherwise.” He set a hearing Wednesday on Khalil’s request for his return from Louisiana, where he’s being detained.

Mahmoud Khalil at a pro-Palestinian protest encampment on the Columbia University campus in New York on April 29, 2024.

Photographer: Ted Shaffrey/AP Photo

Khalil was arrested March 8 at off-campus Columbia housing even though he’s a lawful permanent resident, court filings show. US agents told him that his student visa and green card had been revoked by the State Department. Since then, Khalil was moved to a US Immigration and Customs Enforcement processing center in Jena, Louisiana, one of his lawyers said.

Columbia was the site of prolonged student protests after the Oct. 7 attack by Hamas on Israel, which killed 1,200 people. The US labels Hamas a terrorist organization. Israel’s retaliation against Gaza and Hamas has killed more than 48,000 Palestinians, according to the Hamas-run health ministry.

On Monday, President Donald Trump posted on social media that “ICE proudly apprehended and detained Mahmoud Khalil, a Radical Foreign Pro-Hamas Student on the campus of Columbia University.” He said it would be “the first of many to come.”

Protesters gather in protest of the detention of Mahmoud Khalil by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in New York, on March 10.

Photographer: Selcuk Acar/Anadolu/Getty Images

Green-card holders aren’t typically arrested without a serious criminal offense. Revoking a green card is usually a prolonged process because the holder has been vetted and is on the path to being eligible to become a US citizen.

After Khalil’s arrest, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio posted on X: “We will be revoking the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported.”

Last week, the Trump administration canceled $400 million in federal grants and contracts to Columbia, citing antisemitism complaints by Jewish students amid pro-Palestinian protests.

One of Khalil’s lawyers, Amy Greer, didn’t immediately respond Tuesday to a request for comment. After his arrest, she said in a statement: “We will vigorously be pursuing Mahmoud’s rights in court, and will continue our efforts to right this terrible and inexcusable – and calculated – wrong committed against him.”

Columbia issued a statement saying it would follow federal law.

“Columbia is committed to complying with all legal obligations and supporting our student body and campus community,” the university said. “We are also committed to the legal rights of our students and urge all members of the community to be respectful of those rights.”

Read More: US Hits Columbia With $400 Million in Cuts Over Antisemitism

Khalil completed his master’s program in public administration in December and is set to graduate in May, according to his lawyers. His wife is eight months pregnant.

Khalil, who is Palestinian, was born and raised in Syria but his family has been displaced and now lives throughout Europe and West Asia, according to his lawyers. He entered the US in December 2022 on a student visa.

As an advocate for Palestinian rights, he is “committed to calling on the rest of the world to protect the rights of Palestinians” and to end the violence against them, his lawyers wrote.

He also “has been a mediator and negotiator, facilitating dialogue between Columbia University’s administration and its students,” they wrote. “In this role, he has advocated on behalf of his peers to be treated humanely and fairly by the university.”

Khalil was subjected in the past two months to “profound” online harassment, leading him to email Columbia administrators for support. On March 7, he emailed interim President Katrina Armstrong, describing the “vicious and dehumanizing” campaign against him, including people “falsely labeling him a terrorist threat and calling for his deportation,” according to a Monday court filing.

Deportation Authority

Immigration law experts said the Secretary of State has the authority to declare a foreign national deportable if their continued presence is found to be a concern to US foreign policy.

The Board of Immigration Appeals, a Justice Department panel that reviews immigration court rulings, upheld the secretary’s authority in a 1999 deportation case of a former Mexican government official. The foreigner can still fight to stay in the US under various grounds, including by claiming asylum or for protections under the Convention Against Torture.

Deportation proceedings can take years if the person fighting removal is allowed out of jail, but the process can be far faster for those detained.

The case is M.K. v Joyce, 25-cv-1935, US District Court, Southern District of New York (Manhattan).

(Updates with details of court hearing, background on Khalil)

--With assistance from Alicia A. Caldwell.

To contact the reporter on this story:
David Voreacos in New York at dvoreacos@bloomberg.net

To contact the editors responsible for this story:
Misyrlena Egkolfopoulou at megkolfopoul@bloomberg.net

Steve Stroth

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