Detention of Mohsen Mahdawi

The detention of Mohsen Mahdawi arose from his activism in support of Palestinians and in opposition to the Gaza war as a student at Columbia University, which motivated the U.S. State Department to initiate deportation proceedings, claiming that his actions harm U.S. foreign policy. The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arranged Mahdawi's apprehension at the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) office in Colchester, Vermont, where USCIS had scheduled an interview for him to obtain U.S. citizenship. He was detained on April 14, 2025.

Mahdawi's legal team immediately filed a habeas corpus petition against Donald Trump and his administration, describing his detention as unlawful. His lawyers requested a temporary restraining order to prevent him from being transferred out of Vermont by federal authorities. Vermont federal judge William K. Sessions III granted the request and ordered that Mahdawi remain in Vermont. Vermont federal judge Geoffrey W. Crawford extended the request on April 23.

On April 30, 2025 federal judge Geoffrey W. Crawford in Vermont ordered the release of Mahdawi, stating that "the two weeks of detention so far demonstrate great harm to a person who has been charged with no crime."