Mahmoud Khalil, a prominent Palestinian student activist at Columbia University, remains in detention at a Louisiana immigration facility, despite a federal judge ruling his earlier imprisonment was unconstitutional. Initially held on the grounds that his activism allegedly threatened US foreign policy, the government has since altered its position, now arguing that Khalil is being detained due to purported omissions on immigration documents. The sudden shift in legal grounds has raised questions over whether his detention is politically motivated.
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District Judge Michael Farbiarz recently concluded that the government’s original justification for detention—linking Khalil’s presence to foreign policy concerns—was unconstitutional, noting that it threatened to damage his career and silence his speech. The judge described the government’s use of immigration documentation charges as a questionable fallback, stating such omissions rarely result in imprisonment. Nevertheless, he agreed to uphold Khalil’s detention on those grounds, despite earlier contradicting this rationale in court.
Khalil’s legal team has condemned what they describe as “delay tactics” used to prolong his separation from his family, including his newborn son, whom he has only met once. His arrest, conducted in front of his pregnant wife in March, and subsequent transfer across state lines, has attracted significant criticism from human rights advocates. His lawyers argue that the document-related allegations are a pretext designed to mask unconstitutional retaliation for Khalil’s vocal support of Palestinian rights and opposition to Israel’s military campaign in Gaza.
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The case has sparked wider condemnation of the Trump administration’s actions against international students and scholars engaged in campus activism. Senator Marco Rubio’s use of a rarely invoked statute, paired with the revocation of numerous student visas, has raised concerns over free speech and due process. Khalil remains in detention under Immigration and Customs Enforcement custody as his legal team prepares to challenge what they view as a politically motivated campaign against dissent.
