July 10, 2025 — Mahmoud Khalil, a 30-year-old Columbia University graduate student and Palestinian activist, has filed a $20 million claim against the Trump administration, alleging false imprisonment, malicious prosecution, and defamation stemming from his detention by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
The claim, filed on July 10, 2025, accuses the administration of targeting Khalil for his role in pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University, which he asserts violated his First and Fifth Amendment rights.
Khalil, a lawful permanent U.S. resident born in Syria to Palestinian refugees, was arrested on March 8, 2025, at his university-owned apartment in New York City.
ICE agents, acting without a judicial warrant, detained him and transported him to the LaSalle Detention Center in Jena, Louisiana, where he was held for over three months.
The detention occurred under a rarely invoked provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952, which allows the Secretary of State to deport noncitizens whose presence is deemed to have “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences.”
The Trump administration, including Secretary of State Marco Rubio, justified Khalil’s detention by citing his activism as a threat to U.S. foreign policy interests, specifically alleging that his protests supported Hamas and contributed to antisemitic harassment on Columbia’s campus.
Khalil and his legal team, which includes attorneys from the Center for Constitutional Rights, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), and the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU), have denied these allegations, asserting that Khalil’s activism was nonviolent and protected under the First Amendment.
They argue that the government failed to provide evidence linking Khalil to Hamas or criminal activity.
Khalil’s detention sparked significant controversy, with supporters rallying in New York City, including a protest at Trump Tower on March 13, 2025, where nearly 100 demonstrators were arrested.
The case has been described as a flashpoint in the Trump administration’s broader crackdown on pro-Palestinian student activists, with the White House stating that Khalil’s arrest was the first of “many to come” targeting those accused of supporting terrorism.
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Consequences of the Arrest
In court filings, Khalil’s attorneys argue that his arrest was retaliatory, pointing to the lack of a warrant and the government’s shifting justifications for his detention.
Initially detained for his activism, the administration later alleged immigration fraud, claiming Khalil failed to disclose prior employment with the British Embassy in Beirut and the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA).
Khalil’s legal team has dismissed these claims as baseless, supported by letters from Jewish classmates and professors at Columbia who attest to Khalil’s condemnation of Hamas and efforts to de-escalate tensions on campus.
The emotional toll on Khalil has been profound.
Detained 1,400 miles from his family, he missed the birth of his first child in April 2025 and his Columbia graduation in May.
In a statement to the Associated Press, Khalil described the “pain of that night” in detention, emphasizing the psychological harm caused by what he calls a politically motivated arrest.
He intends to use any potential settlement to support other activists targeted by the administration, though he has also indicated he would accept an apology and the cessation of the policy targeting pro-Palestinian students in lieu of damages.
The Trump administration has defended its actions, with Assistant Secretary of Homeland Security Tricia McLaughlin calling Khalil’s claims “absurd” and asserting that his behavior “terrorized Jewish students on campus.”
The administration has also cut $400 million in federal funding to Columbia University, citing its alleged failure to address antisemitism, a move critics argue is part of a broader effort to suppress dissent.
Khalil’s legal battles continue.
A federal judge in New Jersey granted him bail on June 20, 2025, ruling that the government’s initial justification for his detention was likely unconstitutional.
However, his deportation case remains ongoing, with an immigration judge in Louisiana upholding the administration’s claim in April 2025 that Khalil’s presence posed foreign policy risks.
Khalil’s attorneys are appealing, arguing that the case represents a dangerous precedent for using immigration law to silence free speech.
The lawsuit names the Department of Homeland Security, ICE, and the State Department, alleging “malicious prosecution and abuse of process, false arrest, false imprisonment, and negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress.”
Legal experts note that the case could set a significant precedent for the protection of free speech and the rights of permanent residents in the U.S.
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