Judge orders pro-Palestine activist Mahmoud Khalil be deported to Syria or Algeria
An immigration judge has ordered pro-Palestine activist Mahmoud Khalil be deported to Syria or Algeria, according to court documents.
Immigration Judge Jamee Comans has found that Khalil did not disclose certain required information on his green card application.
According to Comans, Khalil “willfully misrepresented material fact(s) for the sole purpose of circumventing the immigration process and reducing the likelihood his application would be denied.”
The judge added that the court “cannot and will not condone such an action by granting a discretionary waiver. To do so, would encourage future applicants to take the gamble of materially misrepresenting facts and then seeking a waiver if it is somehow discovered by the U.S. government.”
Khalil, a Syrian national, is a former Columbia University student who led large, antisemitic protests on the college campus. In March, Immigration and Customs Enforcement detained Khalil and the Trump administration has been working since then to deport him.
Khalil’s legal team has indicated they will appeal the ruling.
The American Civil Liberties Union, one of the groups representing Khalil, issued a statement labeling the judges ruling “unprecedented.”
Khalil issued a statement arguing 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.”
In April, Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem wrote on X that Khalil “hates the United States and what we stand for—so his removal should come as welcome news.”
Legal challenges have stalled Khalil deportation.
“It is a privilege to be granted a visa or green card to live and study in the United States of America,” Noem continued. “When you advocate for violence, glorify and support terrorists that relish the killing of Americans, and harass Jews, that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country.”
[Editor’s note: This story originally was published by The Daily Signal.]