A federal judge on Friday stated that he will order activist Mahmoud Khalil to be released from immigration detention.
Judge Michael Farbiarz issued the ruling after Khalil’s attorneys asked the judge to either release him on bail from the Louisiana jail in which he is incarcerated or transfer him to a New Jersey facility so he can be closer to his wife and son.
From The Associated Press:
Khalil was the first arrest under President Donald Trump’s crackdown on students who joined campus protests against Israel’s devastating war in Gaza. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said Khalil must be expelled from the country because his continued presence could harm American foreign policy.
The same judge had ruled earlier that the government can continue to detain the legal U.S. resident based on allegations that he lied on his green card application. Khalil disputes the accusations that he wasn’t forthcoming on the application. The judge previously determined that Khalil couldn’t continue being held based on the U.S. secretary of state’s determination that he could harm American foreign policy.
‼️🇺🇸 BREAKING: A federal judge has just ordered Mahmoud Khalil to be 'released' from detention. 👀
— Diligent Denizen 🇺🇸 (@DiligentDenizen) June 20, 2025
Khalil is a Palestinian national & activist involved with disrupting college campuses.
Khalil has been held by ICE for months because a judge blocked his immediate deportation. pic.twitter.com/1ZMVyzpKAe
Khalil, a Syrian-born Palestinian activist and student at Columbia University, became the first foreign student to be arrested for possible deportation for his participation in protests against the war in Gaza on campus. Despite being a lawful permanent resident with a green card, he was facing deportation proceedings. The Trump administration alleges that he supported the terrorist group Hamas and engaged in antisemitic activities that undermined US foreign policy.
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The administration is not accusing Khalil of breaking any laws during the protests. He was not among the violent demonstrators who were arrested amid the pro-Hamas demonstrations. Still, the White House’s position is that foreign students who engage in these protests should be removed from the country, a sentiment Secretary of State Marco Rubio has expressed on multiple occasions.
Since his arrest, Khalil and the government have been locked in a legal battle over his status. Judge Farbiarz, on May 28, ruled that the administration’s detention of Khalil was likely unconstitutional. On June 11, he ordered the administration to release the activist. However, he paused his order for two days so the administration could file an appeal. The White House informed the court that it would not release Khalil, accusing him of providing false information on his green card application.
Critics argue that the Trump administration relied on unverified reports and that its evidence lacked substance. They characterized the case as an effort to suppress criticism of US policy regarding the Israel/Palestinian conflict.
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