Syrian-born anti-Israel activist Mahmoud Khalil, released from detention despite alleged Hamas ties, vowed on Saturday to continue anti-Israel protests while appearing alongside Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) at a New Jersey airport.
Khalil, 30, spent 104 days in a Lousina detention center after his March 8 arrest, as the Trump administration sought to deport the Columbia student for allegedly engaging in activities “aligned to Hamas,” the Palestinian terrorist group responsible for the October 7, 2023, attacks on Israel.
Immediately upon his Friday release following a court order from U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz, Khalil bashed the U.S.-funded “genocide” in Gaza, and even vowed to fight for the rights of the “incredible men” he was imprisoned with in Louisiana, per the New York Post.
“The U.S. government is funding this genocide, and Columbia University is investing in this genocide,” Khalil declared at the airport. “This is what I was protesting. This is what I will continue to protest with every one of you. Not only if they threaten me with detention, even if they would kill me, I would still speak up for Palestine.”
AOC just imbedded herself with a Terrorist Hamas supporter ???????????? Dems 80/20 – we'll take 20 ????
BREAKING: Mahmoud Khalil Holds Press Gaggle With AOC After Being Released From Immigration Detention https://t.co/WOiRdLUc5k pic.twitter.com/zk8712HIqG
— Joni Job (@jj_talking) June 21, 2025
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who joined Khalil at Newark Liberty International Airport alongside his wife and their newborn son, claimed the allegations against Khalil were politically motivated.
“Because Mahmoud Khalil is an advocate for Palestinian human rights, he has been accused, baselessly, of horrific allegations, simply because the Trump administration and our overall establishment disagrees with his political speech,” the congresswoman claimed to reporters. “We will continue to resist the politicization and the continued political persecution that ICE is engaged in.”
The conditions of Khalil’s bail included surrendering his passport and travel restrictions limiting him to New York, New Jersey, Michigan, to visit his family, Washington, D.C., and Louisiana, where his immigration trial will be held.
Khalil graduated from Columbia in December, where Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused him of leading “antisemitic protests and disruptive activities, which fosters a hostile environment for Jewish students in the United States,” as The Daily Wire previously reported.
“Condoning antisemitic conduct and disruptive protests in the United States would severely undermine that significant foreign policy objective,” Rubio added, citing the 1952 Immigration and Naturalization Act, which authorizes the U.S. Secretary of State to deport anyone whose continued residence in the country “would have serious adverse foreign policy consequences.”
Defense attorneys for Khalil celebrated the Syrian’s release as a “significant and important victory,” per the Post.
The Trump administration is appealing Judge Farbiarz’s preliminary injunction and Khalil’s release on bail to the 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals.