The judge stepped in to stop the federal government from immediately deporting Palestinian students who led the pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University.
A federal judge in New York temporarily blocked any efforts by the Trump administration on October 7, 2023, to send Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian student and permanent resident who led the pro-Palestinian camp protest at Columbia University following an attack on Israel by Hamas terrorist groups.
US District Judge Jesse M. Furman for the Southern District of New York ordered that Halil, who was arrested over the weekend on March 10, would not be deported until further legal proceedings were underway and the court could allow the removal from the United States.
“Because the petition’s decision is pending in order to maintain the jurisdiction of the court, the petitioner shall not be removed from the United States unless otherwise ordered by the court,” Furman wrote.
The judge set up a March 12 hearing to consider the Halil case, arrested by President Donald Trump and the White House but accused by Democrats and several civil rights groups.
In a statement on the True Society, Trump praised immigration and customs enforcement (ICE) for arresting Khalil, calling him a “funny foreign pro-Hamas student.”
The president said Halil’s arrest was “the first of many to come,” and warned that additional detention would target individuals engaged in “professional terrorists, anti-Semitic and anti-American activities” on university campuses around the country.
“Many are paid agitators, not students,” writes Trump. “We will find, arrest, and deport these terrorist sympathizers from our country. If we support terrorism, including the massacre of innocent men, women and children, your presence is against the interests of our national and foreign policy and you are not welcome here.”
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Halil was detained as a result of Trump’s executive order banning anti-Semitism after leading an operation in line with Hamas.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio highlighted the administration’s stance in a post on social media platform X, saying the government “could be deported to cancel the visas and green cards of American Hamas supporters.” He did not provide details regarding the implementation of the policy.
Halil’s detention sparked opposition from the congressional constellation, including Congressional Democrats, demanding that he be released soon.
Some civil rights groups and free speech advocates have accused the Trump administration of using immigration enforcement rights to curb criticism of Israel.
“This arrest is unprecedented, illegal and not American,” Ben Wisner, director of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), said in a statement. “The federal government is advocating its authority to expel people with deep ties to the United States to defend its opposition.
The American Council on Islamic Relations, a national Muslim civil rights group, argued that Halil’s arrest was motivated by his protests against Israeli military operations in Gaza, “representing a guarantee of Article 1 of the Free Speech Act and a blatant attack on the Palestinians’ human rights.”
The Epoch Times reached for the ice to comment on the incident.
Halil’s arrest coincides with the Trump administration’s move to cancel $400 million in federal grants and contracts from Columbia University, citing an agency that allegedly failed to address anti-Semitic incidents and harassment of Jewish students on campus.
Following Hamas attacks and Israel’s subsequent military response in Gaza, student-led protests broke out at US universities, including Colombia. Last spring, pro-Palestinian activists organized long-term camps and occupied campus buildings.
Over the past week, Trump has reaffirmed his opposition to such a demonstration.
“All federal funds will be suspended for universities, schools or universities that allow illegal protests,” Trump wrote in a post about True Society. “Agitators will be imprisoned or sent back to the country they came to forever. American students will be expelled or arrested forever in response to a crime.”
Colombia’s interim president, Katrina Armstrong, said on March 7 that the university will work with federal agencies to pledge “serious action” against campus anti-Semitism.
