Demonstrators plan to take over Federal Plaza in New York City on Monday to demand the release of Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian activist and Columbia University graduate arrested by federal immigration agents.
Khalil, who helped organize the school’s pro-Palestinian protests, was hauled away from his university-owned apartment Saturday night by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents after he was told his student visa was being revoked, his attorney said in a statement to NBC News. Attorney Amy Greer added that ICE was informed that Khalil is a permanent resident with a green card but still “detained him anyway.”
The Associated Press reported that the arrest seems to be a result of President Donald Trump’s push to deport international students who protested against the war in Gaza.
The People’s Forum, which is organizing the rally, demanded that Khalil be released immediately.
“Hands off our students! ICE off our campuses!” the group posted on X.
The nonprofit organization Action Network launched a petition that said over 900,000 letters had been sent calling for Khalil’s release.
Greer said her office filed a petition challenging the validity of his detention and they do not know where he is being held. It was initially believed that agents took Khalil to a facility in Elizabeth, New Jersey, but his wife was told he was not there when she tried to visit. His wife is a U.S. citizen and is eight months pregnant.
The lawyer added that she had received reports that he might be in Louisiana. The ICE website lists that Khalil may be at an immigration detention facility in Jena, Louisiana.
“We will vigorously be pursuing Mahmoud’s rights in court, and will continue our efforts to right this terrible and inexcusable — and calculated — wrong committed against him,” she said.
Murad Awawdeh, president and CEO of the New York Immigration Coalition, said the arrest was a “blatantly unconstitutional act.”
“America is supposed to be a country of laws, but this act by the DHS challenges that very concept,” Awawdeh said in a statement. “DHS must immediately release Khalil, and our local elected officials must intervene in this unlawful and politically motivated detention of a New Yorker.”
The New York Civil Liberties Union said Khalil’s detainment was an “extreme attack on his First Amendment rights.”
“Ripping a student from their home, challenging their immigration status, and detaining them solely based on political viewpoint will chill student speech and advocacy across campus,” a statement read. “Political speech should never be a basis for punishment, or lead to deportation.”
A spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security said Khalil was arrested in coordination with ICE and the State Department “in support of President Trump’s executive orders prohibiting anti-Semitism” and because he “led activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post Sunday on X that the administration would be revoking the visas and green cards “of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported.”
Columbia said Sunday in a statement that law enforcement must have a judicial warrant to enter nonpublic university areas, including campus buildings.
“Columbia is committed to complying with all legal obligations and supporting our student body and campus community,” the university said.
