A federal judge in Manhattan on Monday blocked the Trump administration’s effort to deport Mahmoud Khalil — a former Columbia University graduate student who led anti-Israel protests on campus — after he was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) over the weekend.
ICE arrested the Palestinian activist at his university-owned apartment Saturday night with the intent to eventually deport him. The agents said they were acting on the State Department’s order to revoke his student visa, but Khalil’s lawyer contested he only had a green card. The immigration authorities said they would revoke that instead.
The judge blocked the deportation until further notice and scheduled a court hearing for Wednesday. The preliminary order comes after Khalil’s lawyer rushed to his defense with a lawsuit, alleging her client was unlawfully detained.
“Last night ICE agents wrongfully arrested Mahmoud Khalil, claiming his student visa was revoked — even though Mahmoud is a legal permanent resident (green card) and not in the U.S. on a student visa,” attorney Amy Greer said on Sunday. “Confronted with that fact, the ICE agents detained him anyway.”
The Trump administration feels differently. Khalil is said to be a potential national security threat, according to a White House official in contact with the New York Post.
Not only has Khalil been involved in many anti-Israel protests, encampments, and forcible takeovers of campus buildings, but he is also alleged to have exhibited ties to Hamas. The Department of Homeland Security confirmed his support for the terrorist group that attacked Israel on October 7, 2023.
“Khalil led activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization,” DHS spokesman Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement Sunday evening. “ICE and the Department of State are committed to enforcing President Trump’s executive orders and to protecting U.S. national security.”
Last week, President Donald Trump vowed to crack down on anti-Israel “agitators” that protest Israel’s war in Gaza and support Hamas by threatening to arrest and deport them if they have engaged in such activities. Trump followed through on his promise with Khalil’s arrest. He will not be deported yet, however.
Additionally, the State Department revoked the first visa of a foreign student tied to anti-Israel protests after Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. would have “zero tolerance” for terror supporters. The department is using artificial intelligence to parse through student visa holders’ social media accounts to determine whether they have expressed sympathy toward Hamas, according to reports.
While the White House condemned the man for supporting Hamas, Senate Judiciary Democrats stood behind him with the message: “Free Mahmoud Khalil.” Likewise, “Squad” Representative Rashida Tlaib (D., Mich.) and New York Attorney General Letitia James rallied to his defense.
Trump touted ICE’s apprehension of Khalil on Monday, promising it is the “first arrest of many to come.”
“We know there are more students at Columbia and other Universities across the Country who have engaged in pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activity, and the Trump Administration will not tolerate it. Many are not students, they are paid agitators. We will find, apprehend, and deport these terrorist sympathizers from our country — never to return again,” the president posted on Truth Social.
“If you support terrorism, including the slaughtering of innocent men, women, and children, your presence is contrary to our national and foreign policy interests, and you are not welcome here. We expect every one of America’s Colleges and Universities to comply.”
Khalil is currently being held at an ICE detention facility in Jena, Louisiana.