A Palestinian activist who was held in detention for over three months was joyfully welcomed home by supporters as he pushed his infant son’s stroller with one hand and raised his fist in the air with the other.
Mahmoud Khalil, the activist, reunited with friends and briefly spoke to reporters at Newark International Airport in New Jersey after being released from a federal immigration facility in Louisiana. A former Columbia University graduate student and a symbol of President Donald Trump’s crackdown on campus protests, Khalil expressed his commitment to continuing to protest against the ongoing war in Gaza.
“The U.S. government is supporting this genocide, and Columbia University is complicit in it,” Khalil stated. “I will stand with all of you in protest, even if they threaten me with detention or worse. I will always speak out for Palestine.”
Khalil, a legal U.S. resident, emphasized the importance of advocating for immigrants and reiterated that no human being should be deemed illegal.
The 30-year-old activist, who was not accused of any wrongdoing during the protests at Columbia, faced threats of expulsion from the U.S. for participating in demonstrations that the administration deemed antisemitic and pro-Hamas.
Khalil’s release came after U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz questioned the necessity of detaining a legal resident with no history of violence or flight risk. The government has filed an appeal against Khalil’s release.
U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined Khalil at the airport, condemning his detention as a violation of the First Amendment and an injustice to all Americans.
“He has been unfairly accused of heinous allegations simply because his political views differ from those in power,” Ocasio-Cortez stated. “The Trump administration is knowingly breaking the law.”
