The Trump administration is intensifying efforts to suppress Palestinian-supported protests on college campuses, even as protests have erupted over the arrest of activist Mahmoud Khalil at the president’s residence in New York City, with ongoing resistance in legal and other efforts.
Khalil, a Palestinian refugee whose green card was revoked due to his involvement in protests at Columbia University in New York City last spring, is currently in ICE custody in Louisiana. A new video posted online by the American Civil Liberties Union on Friday shows moments of his arrest on March 8 by his pregnant wife.
According to court records, after the lawyers failed to agree on a timeline for the next steps in the case, Judge Jessie Furman set a deadline for Khalil’s legal team to file a motion for his bail by 11:59 PM Friday. The government will then have until 11:59 PM Wednesday to respond.
One of Khalil’s attorneys, Brad Parker, Associate Director of Policy at the Center for Constitutional Rights, told CNN’s Jake Tapper on Friday, “We are currently fighting to bring Mahmoud home, back to his family, and to have him released from custody, because this is a clear case of a person being targeted and retaliated against for constitutionally protected speech and political dissent.”
Trump, whose envoy is attempting to negotiate an extension of a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, boasted on social media this week that his administration had “proudly arrested” Khalil, further stating that those who “support terrorism… are not welcome here.”
However, Khalil’s attorney stated on Friday to CNN that the government’s case has “no basis in law.”
Donna Lieberman, Executive Director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, told Sara Sudner, “They’ve kidnapped this person, this young student, soon-to-be father… on the grounds that his political views are wrong, and that he has expressed them.”
“This is an attempt to intimidate universities. It’s an attempt to scare students into not speaking out, faculty into not speaking out, to remain silent and go along with the administration’s program.”
Protests continued at Columbia University on Friday, where organizers now face multiple challenges, from the presence of federal agents on campus and an ultimatum regarding federal funding to defending lawsuits to discipline participants in last spring’s protests and halt the school’s cooperation in House investigations.
The U.S. Department of Justice is also investigating whether individuals involved in last year’s Palestinian-supported protests at Columbia violated federal anti-terrorism laws, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced on Friday.
Blanche told department employees, “The Department of Justice is examining whether violations of civil rights laws occurred in connection with Columbia’s handling of the initial incidents, including terrorism-related offenses. This should have happened a long time ago.”
Blanche added that the department will investigate whether Columbia University was illegally harboring or hiding undocumented immigrants in the U.S.
Columbia Faces New Federal Ultimatum
Columbia students are concerned about the presence of federal agents on campus. The university’s interim president announced late Thursday that Department of Homeland Security agents had presented two warrants to search the rooms of two students.
Katherine Armstrong said in an email, “No one was arrested or detained. No property was taken, and no further action was taken,” acknowledging “the immense pressure on our community.”
Columbia University Apartheid Divestment Group members, including Sweida Polat, second from left, and Mahmoud Khalil, center, are surrounded by media members outside Columbia University’s campus in New York in April 2024. (Mary Altaffer/AP)
She said, “Columbia is doing everything possible to ensure that our campus, students, faculty, and staff remain safe. Columbia is committed to following the law, and we expect the same from the city, state, and federal agencies.”
Homeland Security confirmed on Friday that ICE agents had arrested another Columbia University student, citing immigration violations related to overstaying their visa.
Leqa Kordia, a Palestinian from the West Bank, had his visa canceled in January 2022 due to lack of attendance, and he was arrested last year by local law enforcement for participating in “Hamas-supported protests” at Columbia University.
According to DHS, he was taken into custody on Thursday, although it was unclear where he was arrested. The agency stated that another separate Columbia student was deported to Canada.
Department of Homeland Security Confirms ICE Arrest at Columbia
In related developments, the Department of Education and other federal agencies sent a joint letter to Columbia administrators on Thursday outlining “formal conditions for negotiations regarding Columbia University’s continuing financial relationships with the U.S. government.”
According to a copy of the letter obtained by CNN, these measures include adopting a definition of “anti-Semitism,” reforming the university’s admissions process, and abolishing the university’s judicial board, which handles disciplinary actions for violations of the university’s code of conduct.
The Ivy League school was given a week to comply with the Trump administration’s demands, after which it faced the threat of losing $400 million in grants and contracts related to anti-Semitism at the campus.
Columbia announced Thursday that students who staged sit-ins at Hamilton Hall during the April Palestinian-supported protests had been expelled, suspended, or temporarily had their degrees revoked.
Students Sue Over Records Requests
Meanwhile, Khalil and seven other students filed a lawsuit on Thursday against Columbia, Barnard College, and the House Committee on Education and the Workforce to block the panel’s demands for universities to share “hundreds of student” school and disciplinary records.
In a lawsuit supported by the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), it was argued that the committee’s “political agenda is clear,” accusing the government of using “accusations of anti-Semitism to weaponize attacks against opposing ideological views.”
