In a dramatic ruling that has ignited fierce debate over free speech and immigration, a U.S. immigration judge has ordered the deportation of Mahmoud Khalil, a prominent pro-Palestinian activist and former Columbia University graduate student, to either Syria—where he was born—or Algeria, his country of citizenship. The decision, issued by Judge Jamee Comans in Louisiana on September 12, 2025, stems from allegations that Khalil omitted key information on his green card application, including his role as a political officer for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) and his involvement with Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a group advocating for divestment from Israel.
Khalil, 30, a Palestinian of Syrian origin, became a focal point of the 2024 campus protests against Israel’s war in Gaza, serving as a spokesperson for demonstrators at Columbia. He entered the U.S. on a student visa in December 2022 and adjusted to lawful permanent resident status in November 2023. He was detained in March 2025 as part of the Trump administration’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian activism, accused of posing a national security threat. Released in June after a federal judge ruled he was neither a flight risk nor dangerous, Khalil now faces removal despite being married to a U.S. citizen and having a U.S.-born child.
Khalil decried the order as political retaliation, stating, “It is no surprise that the Trump administration continues to retaliate against me for my exercise of free speech.” His lawyers plan to appeal, citing a separate federal ruling that protects him from immediate deportation. The administration, through the Justice Department, hailed the decision as upholding immigration integrity, with no comment on free speech concerns.
The case, one of several targeting campus activists, highlights escalating tensions between protest rights and security measures, as rights groups warn of a chilling effect on dissent.
