While a student at Columbia University, Khalil was part of a leadership group protesting the war in Gaza. Khalil took part in negotiations with school administrators demanding the institution cut ties with Israel and divest from Israeli companies.
An immigration judge in Louisiana ruled Friday that Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University activist and permanent U.S. resident, can be deported on grounds that his presence poses a threat to American foreign policy. The Trump administration cited an obscure 1952 law to justify the decision, despite presenting no additional evidence beyond a memo from Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
The decision shocked courtroom observers, with some weeping as Judge Jamee Comans sided with the government. She gave Khalil’s legal team until April 23 to seek relief or risk his removal to Syria or Algeria. Khalil, whose American wife is days from giving birth, condemned the process.
“Clearly what we witnessed today, neither of these principles [due process and fundamental fairness] were present today or in this whole process,” Khalil said in court.
Khalil was arrested by ICE in March. Though he completed graduate studies at Columbia in December, he remains involved in pro-Palestinian activism. A parallel federal case in New Jersey still blocks his removal.