A US judge extended his order on Wednesday, preventing federal authorities from deporting a detained Columbia University student, Mahmoud Khalil, in a case that has become a significant focal point of the Trump administration’s pledge to deport pro-Palestinian college activists.
US District Judge Jesse Furman had initially blocked Khalil’s deportation earlier this week and extended the prohibition on Wednesday in a written order following a court hearing in Manhattan. This extension allows him more time to decide whether the arrest was unconstitutional.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) asserts that Khalil, 30, is subject to deportation under a provision that allows the US Secretary of State to remove migrants whose presence is deemed detrimental to US foreign policy. According to a document seen by Reuters, the DHS claims, “The Secretary of State has determined that your presence or activities in the United States would have serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.”
Khalil’s lawyers argue that his arrest was retaliation for his outspoken criticism of Israel’s military actions in Gaza after the Hamas attack in October 2023, thus violating his First Amendment right to free speech.
“Mr. Khalil was identified, targeted, detained, and is being processed for deportation because of his advocacy for Palestinian rights,” his lawyer Ramzi Kassem stated in court.
Khalil’s wife, Noora Abdalla, in her first media interview, expressed hope that her husband would be freed in time for the birth of their first child next month. “It’s been so hard not having him here,” she said. “There’s a lot of emotions and pain. He’s been there for me every step of the way.”
Outside the courthouse, Kassem argued that the legal provision cited by DHS is rarely used and was not intended to suppress dissent.
Khalil, born and raised in a Palestinian refugee camp in Syria, came to the US on a student visa in 2022 and became a permanent resident the following year. He was a leading figure in Columbia’s protests against Israel’s military actions in Gaza.
President Donald Trump has publicly claimed Khalil supports Hamas, though the administration has not charged him with any crime or presented evidence to back these claims. The Trump administration has criticized pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses, alleging they sometimes involve support for Hamas and antisemitic harassment of Jewish students. Student activists argue that criticizing Israel should not be equated with antisemitism.
“This is not about free speech,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier on Wednesday while in Ireland. “If you told us you were a Hamas supporter and you were coming to disrupt our universities, we would never have allowed you in.”
The case may ultimately test the balance between protected free speech and alleged support for groups the US designates as terrorist organizations.
Protesters gathered outside the courthouse, holding signs demanding Khalil’s release and chanting, “Down, down with deportation, up, up with liberation.”
At the hearing, government lawyer Brandon Waterman suggested Khalil’s challenge be moved to New Jersey or Louisiana, where he is currently being held. Furman also ordered that Khalil be allowed two private one-hour phone calls with his lawyers, one on Wednesday and another on Thursday, after Kassem reported that Khalil’s earlier call was cut short and made on a government-monitored line.
Even before Furman’s order, there was no indication that Khalil’s deportation was imminent. He has the right to argue his case in immigration court to avoid deportation, which could be a lengthy process.
