Federal immigration agents in the United States have arrested a Palestinian graduate student who played a prominent role in pro-Palestinian protests at the Columbia University in New York, following President Donald Trump’s pledge to deport foreign anti-Israel student demonstrators.
Mahmoud Khalil, a student of the university’s School of International and Public Affairs, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on Sunday, the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said on social media platform X. The graduate student is a Palestinian refugee who was raised in Syria.
What else do we know about the arrest?
A statement from the Student Workers of Columbia labor union (SWC) said Khalil was arrested on Saturday evening at his university residence.
DHS has alleged that Khalil led activities aligned to Palestinian Islamist group Hamas, adding that he was arrested “in support of President Trump’s executive orders prohibiting antisemitism.”
The US, along with the German government, the EU and some Arab states, designates Hamas a terror organization.
US law forbids providing “material support or resources” to groups the country has designated as terrorist organizations.
The law does not define or prohibit “activities aligned to” these groups.
Neither ICE or DHS has said Khalil is accused of giving material support to Hamas.
Who is Mahmoud Khalil?
Last spring, several US college campuses were rocked by demonstrations against the Israeli offensive in Gaza .
At Columbia University, Khalil served as a mediator for students as they negotiated with university officials over an end to the tent encampment set up on campus. Due to his role, he was one of the few student activists who were willing to share their names and identity.
Khalil had expressed worries that he was being targeted by the government for speaking to the media, in an interview with news agency Reuters hours before his arrest.
His wife is a US citizen and is eight months pregnant, as per media reports.
Khalil held a permanent residency green card at the time of his arrest, the SWC said.
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Amy Greer, Khalil’s lawyer, told The Associated Press news agency that she spoke with one of the ICE agents by phone and was told that the authorities were revoking his permanent residency.
Greer added that the officials declined to tell Khalil’s wife whether he was accused of committing a crime.
The arrest has drawn criticism from civil rights groups, who see it as an attack on protected political speech.
Trump vows crackdown on pro-Palestinian protests
Khalil’s arrest comes after Trump promised to take action against pro-Palestinian protests, which he has described as antisemitic.
The president and other officials have said the US could deport some protesters who do not have US citizenship.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio shared a news report of Khalil’s arrest on social media on Sunday and said: “We will be revoking the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported.”
On Friday, the Trump administration canceled some $400 million (€370 million) in federal government grants and contracts to Columbia University over allegations of antisemitism on campus.
The SWC said in its statement that it was also aware of multiple reports of ICE agents “accessing or attempting to access” Columbia campus buildings over the weekend, including undergraduate housing.
Columbia University did not address Khalil’s arrest directly, but said “there have been reports of ICE in the streets around campus.”
“Columbia has and will continue to follow the law. Consistent with our longstanding practice and the practice of cities and institutions throughout the country, law enforcement must have a judicial warrant to enter non-public University areas, including University buildings,” the university’s statement said.
Edited by: Saim Dušan Inayatullah
