A judge has intervened to stop the federal government from immediately deporting a Palestinian student who led pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University.
A federal judge in New York has temporarily blocked any effort by the Trump administration to deport Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian student and permanent resident who led pro-Palestinian encampment protests at Columbia University after the deadly Oct. 7, 2023, attack on Israel by the Hamas terrorist group.
U.S. District Judge Jesse M. Furman of the Southern District of New York ordered on March 10 that Khalil—who was arrested over the weekend—must not be deported until further legal proceedings have played out and the court potentially authorizes his removal from the United States.
“To preserve the Court’s jurisdiction pending a ruling on the petition, Petitioner shall not be removed from the United States unless and until the Court orders otherwise,” Furman wrote.
The judge set a March 12 hearing to consider the case of Khalil, whose arrest was celebrated by President Donald Trump and the White House but denounced by Democrats and some civil rights groups.
In a statement on Truth Social, Trump praised Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for arresting Khalil, calling him a “Radical Foreign Pro-Hamas Student.”
The president said that Khalil’s apprehension was the “first arrest of many to come” and warned that additional detentions would target individuals engaged in “pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activity” on college campuses nationwide.
“Many are not students, they are paid agitators,” Trump wrote. “We will find, apprehend, and deport these terrorist sympathizers from our country—never to return again. If you support terrorism, including the slaughtering of innocent men, women, and children, your presence is contrary to our national and foreign policy interests, and you are not welcome here.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio underscored the administration’s stance in a post on social media platform X, stating that the government “will be revoking the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported.” He did not provide further details on the policy implementation.
By Tom Ozimek
