An immigration judge has ruled that pro-Palestinian student protester and US permanent resident Mahmoud Khalil can be deported following detention by the Trump administration, according to his attorney.
Assistant Chief Immigration Judge Jamee Comans, based in Louisiana, determined the federal government had proven grounds for deportation. Khalil’s lawyer Marc van der Hout condemned the ruling, stating: “Today, we saw our worst fears play out: Mahmoud was subject to a charade of due process, a flagrant violation of his right to a fair hearing, and a weaponisation of immigration law to suppress dissent. This is not over, and our fight continues.”
The Columbia University student, who became a prominent figure in protests responding to Israel’s war in Gaza, has not yet been scheduled for deportation. The judge granted his attorneys until April 23 to seek a waiver. Khalil is married to a US citizen.
Judge Comans had previously ordered the government to detail its case against Khalil, whom officials seek to deport claiming his protest activities threaten national security. In a letter to the court, Secretary of State Marco Rubio argued Khalil’s activism could harm US foreign policy. The letter referenced Khalil’s “participation and roles” in allegedly “anti-Semitic protests and disruptive activities which fosters a hostile environment for Jewish students,” but made no mention of criminal activity or formal allegations of Hamas alignment, despite officials suggesting this to journalists.
Following the hearing, Khalil told the court: “I would like to quote what you said last time, that there’s nothing that’s more important to this court than due process rights and fundamental fairness. Clearly what we witnessed today, neither of these principles was present.”
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem commented on social media that “when you advocate for violence, glorify and support terrorists… and harass Jews… you should not be in this country.”
A separate New Jersey judge, hearing Khalil’s detention challenge, held proceedings immediately after the Louisiana ruling. Khalil’s legal team plans to contest the deportation ruling once fully issued.
Dozens of prominent lawyers have joined Khalil’s case, framing it as a test of free speech rights and presidential authority limits. The arrest has generated outrage from various quarters, including Trump critics, free speech advocates, and some conservatives concerned about expression rights.
Columbia University law professor David Pozen said during a teach-in event: “The Trump administration’s actions against universities, their researchers and their students have no recent precedent in US history. American democracy is in crisis.”
Ramya Krishman from Columbia’s Knight First Amendment Institute added: “The administration has unleashed, to put it bluntly, a campaign of terror on immigrants in this country. And it seems that no one is safe.”
Immigration officials have similarly targeted other foreign student protesters, including Tufts University student Rumeysa Ozturk from Turkey and Columbia student Yunseo Chung, a permanent resident from South Korea, though courts have temporarily blocked their deportations.
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