Federal immigration agents arrested anti-Israel protester Mahmoud Khalil last month and defended the action in new court documents, saying that the arrest was legal.
Last year, Halil, one of the anti-Israel protesters at Columbia University, where the Trump administration is trying to deport him, was arrested from his university-owned apartment in a Homeland Security Investigation (HSI) in New York City about six weeks ago. He was then taken to the Louisiana Detention Center.
Documents registered in New Jersey court on Thursday said that when an attorney for Homeland Security asked him to cooperate while the agent stood up to Halil on March 8 and was trying to verify his identity, he said he was not cooperating and was about to leave the scene.
Mahmoud Khalil, left, protester, right. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, left, Barry Williams/New York Daily News/Tribune News Service Getty Images, right.)
Colombian anti-Israel protester Mahmoud Khalil could be deported, judge rule
At that time, the Homeland Security Superintendent “believed there was a risk of flight and there was a need for arrest,” he said.
Halil’s lawyers objected to the government’s explanation of the situation, saying that Halil’s wife entered his apartment and that the agent had retrieved his green card just to arrest him. Khalil is a Palestinian raised in Syria and is a permanent resident of the United States. Halil’s lawyers argued that the Trump administration had no evidence that it refused to cooperate with agents during its arrest.
Greer, who had been calling with Halil on the night of his arrest, said that even if Khalil could not show a warrant for an arrest, he remained calm and complied with the order. His lawyers say the video released by Halil’s wife shows him remain a cooperative.
“Today, we know why they never showed Mahmoud that warrant – they didn’t have it. This is clearly yet another hopeless attempt by the Trump administration to justify the illegal arrest and detention of human rights advocate Mahmoud Khalil, which is now, by implicit entry by the government’s own.
Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil will discuss with the media during a media briefing hosted by pro-Palestinian protesters, who established a new camp at Columbia University’s Morningside Heights campus on June 1, 2024 in New York City, USA on Friday evening. (Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Mahmoud Khalil Rips ‘Respression’ Trump Admin erodes his rights in the Washington Post
The Department of Homeland Security previously said it had made arrests to protect the US national security, claiming that Halil “led activities along Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.”
According to CNN, Halil played a major role in the protests against Israel that shook Columbia University last year, meeting with university officials on behalf of Columbia University’s Apartheid Dibust. Halil, who acted as a spokesman for Colombian protesters, has not been charged with a crime.
The immigration judge has already ruled that Mahmoud Khalil could be deported from the United States due to his involvement in the protest at Columbia University, and said the US government has met the burden of evidence to remove him. Halil’s lawyers are suing the decision.
Halil’s lawyer, Mark van der Hout, said in a press release issued by the American Civil Liberties Union, that the agent told Halil when he took the arrest warrant.
“The government hospitalizations are amazing and it’s completely outrageous that they tried to assert the immigrant judge and the world in their first filing of their arrest reports. “This is a terrible act by DHS that should be called for the termination of these cases under the law, and we hope that the immigrant courts will control it.”
Khalil completed the requirements for a Masters of Columbia degree in December. Born in Syria, he is the grandson of a Palestinian who was forced to leave his hometown, his lawyer said in a legal application.
His wife, a US citizen, gave birth to the couple’s child this week. Khalil demanded temporary release to attend the birth, but Ice denied those complaints and he missed the event.
The group’s protesters, Jewish Voices for Peace, will protest inside Trump Tower in New York City on Thursday, March 13th in support of Columbia graduate student Mahmoud Khalil. (AP/Yuki Iwamura)
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Khalil’s lawsuit sparked several protests in New York City. This included a massive demonstration inside Trump Tower last month, with nearly 100 people arrested. It is also seen as a marker of the Trump administration’s attempt to detain and deport visa holders who protested on university campuses.
White House spokesman Caroline Leavitt previously defended Trump’s decision to arrest Halil, claiming he distributed pro-Hamas propaganda flyers on campus.
“This administration is not going to tolerate any individual who has the privilege to study in our country and be with the pro-terrorist organization that killed Americans,” Leavitt told reporters on Tuesday at a White House press conference. “We have a zero-tolerance policy for siding in the age of terrorists.”
Diana Stancy, Alexis McAdams, Stepheny Price and The Associated Press of Fox News contributed to this report.
