Mahmoud Khalil can be deported over his involvement in anti-Israel demonstrations at Columbia University, an immigration judge ruled Friday in the closely watched case.
The ruling in Louisiana federal court came in the government’s bid to boot the Syrian-born permanent resident out of the US over his anti-Israel activism at Columbia.
But Khalil won’t be deported immediately — his lawyers will get the chance to fight the proceedings before a final determination is made.
Khalil, 30, was arrested on March 8 by ICE agents inside the building of his university-funded Manhattan apartment where he lived with his pregnant wife, an American citizen.
His arrest was the result of a crackdown by the Trump administration on anti-Israel protesters at university campuses.
Khalil was transferred a day after his arrest to a lockup in Jena, Louisiana, over a thousand miles away from his expectant wife.
His lawyers have been fighting the arrest both in immigration court and in New Jersey federal court where they filed a habeas corpus petition for his release on the grounds the arrest violated his First Amendment right to free speech, since the government allegedly targeted him for his anti-Israel activities.
ICE and the Department of Homeland Security invoked an obscure law that allows a Secretary of State to deport noncitizens who potentially threaten US foreign policy.
At the first hearing in Khalil’s immigration case Tuesday, Louisiana Judge Jamee Comans ordered the feds to provide her evidence supporting their bid to deport Khalil so she could make her decision at the Friday hearing.
On Wednesday, the government filed a two-page memo from Secretary of State Marco Rubio arguing Khalil should be kicked out because of his participation “in antisemitic protests and disruptive activities, which fosters a hostile environment for Jewish students in the United States.”
Rubio’s memo said Khalil’s presence in the country undermines “U.S. policy to combat antisemitism around the world and in the United States, in addition to efforts to protect Jewish students from harassment and violence in the United States.”
It also cited the Trump administration’s authority to deport noncitizens whose presence in the country hurts US foreign policy interests.
Khalil, a Syrian-born Palestinian who is also a citizen of Algeria, once worked for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees.
He moved to the US in 2022 to enroll at Columbia, where he led Columbia United Apartheid Divest (CUAD) — an umbrella of radical student organizations that sympathizes with terror groups like Hamas and Hezbollah and has previously called for the “end of Western civilization.”
Khalil was the main negotiator between CUAD and Columbia administrators during the encampment protests last year.
Khalil lawyer Marc Van Der Hout said Rubio’s “determination has absolutely nothing to do with foreign policy.”
But at a video press conference Thursday, Khalil’s lawyers claimed the feds showed how little evidence they actually had against Khalil.
The lawyer claimed immigration authorities were simply targeting him for his beliefs, which are protected free speech.
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