Colombian student Mahmoud Khalil calls himself a “political prisoner” after US immigration arrest
In his first direct comment since his detention, Mahmoud Khalil, a graduate student at Columbia University’s Palestine University, called himself a political prisoner.
Khalil, a permanent resident of the United States, was condemned by multiple human rights groups to attack freedom of speech and due process. More than 100 Democratic lawmakers in the U.S. House of Representatives questioned the legitimacy of the detention in a letter to Republican President Donald Trump’s administration.
Khalil, 30, was deported because Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined that his presence in the United States could have “adverse foreign policy consequences.” Justice Department lawyers said.
Khalil’s case could test the boundaries between protected speech that courts provide assurances to citizens and non-citizens under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, while the executive believes that some protests may undermine foreign policy.
Mahmoud Khalil, a legal Columbia University student in the country, was arrested by U.S. immigration agents and faced deportation for participating in pro-Palestine protests. It was one of the first known arrests related to the Trump administration’s threat to student activists.
“My name is Mahmoud Khalil, and I am a political prisoner,” Khalil said in a letter published on Tuesday.
“What I was arrested was the direct consequence of the exercise of the right to freedom of speech, as I advocate for free Palestine and end the genocide in Gaza, with full efforts to recover on Monday night,” Khalil said in his letter.
Harrier’s lawyer urged to be released immediately. Khalil became a legal permanent resident of the United States last year. His wife was eight months pregnant.
His March 8 arrest sparked protests in different U.S. cities, including in New York City on Tuesday, when hundreds of people gathered in Times Square to demand his release.
Trump vowed to expel pro-Palestinian activists who participated in a U.S. university campus protest against Israel’s war in Gaza after the October 2023 Hamas attack. Trump claims the protesters are anti-Semitic and supports Hamas militants.
Pro-Palestinian advocates, including some Jewish groups, say their criticism of Israel’s attack on Gaza is wrongly confused with anti-Semitism, and their support for Palestinian rights is combined with support for Hamas militants. Khalil said in his letter Tuesday that his arrest indicated anti-Palestinian racism.
The government has not yet elaborated on how Khalil hurts U.S. foreign policy. Trump has no evidence and accused him of supporting Hamas. Khalil’s legal team said he had no contact with Hamas.
