A United States immigration judge has ordered pro-Palestinian protest leader Mahmoud Khalil to be deported to either Algeria or Syria.
The deportation order has been passed over claims that he omitted some information from his green card application, according to the court documents.
According to Khalil’s lawyers, they will appeal the deportation order. They also pointed out that a federal district court has already issued separate orders which say the government cannot immediately deport or detain him while his case in federal court is still going on.
Reacting to the order, Khalil said that it was “no surprise”. “It is no surprise that the Trump administration continues to retaliate against me for my exercise of free speech…Their latest attempt, through a kangaroo immigration court, exposes their true colors once again,” Khalil said in a statement, reported Bloomberg.
Who is Mahmoud Khalil
Mahmoud Khalil is a former graduate student from the New York's prestigious Columbia University, where he led pro-Palestinian protests in the campus. He was earlier detained for over three months before being let out.
Khalil is a Palestinian born in Syria who became one of the most prominent faces of pro-Palestine protests in the US. He also came under fire during the Trump administration's crackdown on such protests in campuses across the US. He was detained in March and released in June after court orders.
{{/usCountry}}Khalil is a Palestinian born in Syria who became one of the most prominent faces of pro-Palestine protests in the US. He also came under fire during the Trump administration's crackdown on such protests in campuses across the US. He was detained in March and released in June after court orders.
{{/usCountry}}The Trump administration has sought his deportation claiming irregularities in his 2024 green card application.
Khalil is married to a US citizen and his wife delivered their baby while he was in custody in April.
Khalil's lawyers seek help from federal judge
Khalil's lawyers said that they have reached out to the federal district court judge Michael Farbiarz who passed the order earlier this year protecting Khalil from deportation and detention.
One of Khalil's lawyers, Baher Azmy, wrote to Farbiarz on Wednesday and said that immigration judge's order of denying a waiver against deportation to his client without even holding a hearing was “highly unusual.”
The letter by the Khalil's lawyers also said that the Trump administration’s efforts to deport him “represents a substantial threat to petitioner’s liberty, family integrity and if ultimately removed, his physical safety."
(With inputs from Bloomberg)