NEW YORK — A Palestinian activist, Mahmoud Khalil, who was a key figure in Columbia University’s pro-Palestine protests, was arrested on Saturday by federal immigration authorities. This action marks a significant escalation in the Trump Administration’s commitment to detaining and deporting student activists.
Khalil, a former Columbia graduate student until December, was taken into custody by ICE agents inside his university-owned apartment on Saturday night, according to his attorney, Amy Greer.
Greer stated that during the arrest, she spoke with an ICE agent who claimed they were acting on State Department orders to revoke Khalil’s student visa. After Greer informed the agent that Khalil was a permanent resident with a green card, the agent said they would revoke the green card instead.
Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, confirmed Khalil’s arrest in a statement on Sunday, citing it as being “in support of President Trump’s executive orders prohibiting anti-Semitism.”
Khalil’s arrest represents the first publicly known deportation attempt under Trump’s promised crackdown on students involved in the spring’s campus protests against the Gaza conflict. The administration asserts that these students have forfeited their right to remain in the U.S. by supporting Hamas.
McLaughlin suggested a direct connection between the arrest and Khalil’s role in the protests, alleging he “led activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.”
According to Greer, ICE agents who arrived at Khalil’s Manhattan residence Saturday night also threatened to arrest Khalil’s wife, an American citizen who is eight months pregnant.
Khalil’s lawyer reported that they were initially told he was being held at an immigration detention center in Elizabeth, New Jersey. However, when his wife attempted to visit on Sunday, she was informed he was not there. As of Sunday night, Greer stated she was still unaware of Khalil’s location.
“We have not been able to get any more details about why he is being detained,” Greer told the AP. “This is a clear escalation. The administration is following through on its threats.”
A Columbia University representative indicated that law enforcement agents must present a warrant before entering university property but did not specify whether the school had received one prior to Khalil’s arrest. The representative declined to comment on Khalil’s detention.
In a shared on X Sunday evening, Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated that the administration “will be revoking the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported.”
The Department of Homeland Security can begin deportation proceedings against green card holders for various alleged criminal activities, including support for a terror group. However, immigration experts noted that detaining a legal permanent resident without criminal charges is an extraordinary move with questionable legal grounds.
“This has the appearance of a retaliatory action against someone who expressed an opinion the Trump administration didn’t like,” stated Camille Mackler, founder of Immigrant ARC, a coalition of legal service providers in New York.
Khalil, who earned his master’s degree from Columbia’s school of international affairs last semester, served as a negotiator for students in discussions with university officials to end the tent encampment erected on campus last spring.
This role made him a prominent activist, from pro-Israel activists in recent weeks for the Trump administration to begin deportation proceedings against him.
Khalil was also among those under investigation by a new Columbia University office that has brought disciplinary charges against many students for their pro-Palestinian activism, according to documents shared with the AP.
These investigations coincide with the Trump Administration’s actions to cut significant funding to Columbia, citing the school’s failure to suppress antisemitism on campus.
The university’s accusations against Khalil centered on his involvement with the Columbia University Apartheid Divest group. He faced penalties for potentially assisting in organizing an “unauthorized marching event” where participants allegedly glorified Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack, and for playing a “substantial role” in distributing social media posts critical of Zionism, among other alleged acts of discrimination.
“I have around 13 allegations against me, most of them are social media posts that I had nothing to do with,” Khalil told the AP last week.
“They just want to show Congress and right-wing politicians that they’re doing something, regardless of the stakes for students,” he added. “It’s mainly an office to chill pro-Palestine speech.”
