Detention of Mahmoud Khalil

Mahmoud Khalil, a student activist at Columbia University and a lead negotiator in pro-Palestinian protests and campus occupations during the Gaza war, was taken from his Columbia residential apartment building in New York City by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on March 8, 2025. The agents did not have a warrant and were acting on orders from the State Department to revoke Khalil's student visa. When the agents were informed that Khalil is a lawful permanent resident, they said this status would be revoked instead. He was transported to LaSalle Detention Center in Jena, Louisiana.

The detention is the first publicly known deportation effort related to pro-Palestine activism under President Donald Trump, who has threatened to punish students and others who he says have engaged in activities "aligned to Hamas". The White House posted a taunting picture of Khalil with the caption "SHALOM, MAHMOUD" on social media. Khalil's detention has received widespread backlash from civil rights organizations, members of the Democratic Party, and lawyers, who argue that it is an attack on freedom of speech and the First Amendment.

There is no criminal charge against Khalil. Instead, the government's argument depends on a section of the Cold War–era Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 (INA), which provides that aliens in the U.S. may be deported if the secretary of state believes their presence will have serious negative consequences for U.S. foreign policy. Several journalists and human rights organizations have noted the connection between this law and McCarthyism.

On April 1, 2025, New Jersey federal district judge Michael E. Farbiarz stated his court had jurisdiction over Khalil's habeas corpus case, and issued a stay on Khalil's deportation while the court considered a challenge to the constitutionality of his arrest and detention. On April 11, in a separate case in immigration court, Louisiana immigration judge Jamee E. Comans ruled that Khalil is deportable under Secretary of State Marco Rubio's assertion that his continued presence poses "adverse foreign policy consequences". Comans said she had no authority to question that determination. On May 28, Farbiarz ruled that the relevant section of the INA was likely unconstitutional. On June 11, Farbiarz ruled that Khalil should be released from detention, though he paused the order for two days to enable the government to appeal his ruling. On June 13, the government told the court it would not release Khalil.