Mahmoud Khalil, the former Columbia University student who was detained following his participation in pro-Palestine protests on campus, was released on bail from a federal immigration detention center. He left the Louisiana facility where he was held on Friday, June 20 and arrived in Newark International Airport in New Jersey on Saturday, June 21.
Speaking to reporters, Khalil said “the fight is far from over.”
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“The genocide’s still happening in Gaza. Israel is still waging a full war against Palestinians, across Palestine,” Khalil said. “The U.S. government is funding this genocide, and Columbia University is investing in this genocide.”
Democratic U.S. Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York joined Khalil at Saturday’s press conference, and said, “we will have to continue to support this case.”
“Everyone agrees that the persecution based on political speech is wrong and it is a violation of all of our First Amendment rights, not just Mahmoud’s,” Ocasio-Cortez said.
At the Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Jena on Friday, Khalil said that “although justice prevailed… it’s very long overdue.”
“This shouldn’t have taken three months,” Khalil said.
Mahmoud Khalil’s arrest fallout
Khalil was arrested on March 8 by federal immigration agents at his Manhattan apartment building. The Trump administration is trying to deport him as they claim his actions are a threat to U.S. foreign policy interests.
In a two-page memo, Secretary of State Marco Rubio accused Khalil of taking part in “antisemitic protests and disruptive activities.” NPR reported that Khalil’s lawyer denied these allegations of antisemitism, saying that he was criticizing Israel and the United States for the “slaughter” happening in Gaza. The Department of Homeland Security also alleged Khalil lied on his green card application, which he denied.
Judge Michael Farbiarz of the U.S. District Court for New Jersey on Wednesday, June 11 ruled that officials could not continue to hold Khalil in detention over allegations that he threatens U.S. foreign policy. On Friday, June 20, Farbiarz in a phone hearing said it is “highly, highly unusual” for the government to keep a U.S. resident in custody when they are not likely to flee, and not accused of violence, the Associated Press reported. Khalil has not been charged with a crime, and the American Civil Liberties Union said he is a “lawful permanent resident.” Evidence presented in court showed Khalil is not a danger to the community, Fabiarz said.
During his detention, Khalil missed the birth of his first child and his graduation from Columbia. In his remarks on June 20, Khalil said he was only allowed to see his son in one hour-long visit allowed by the government.
Noor Abdalla, Khalil’s wife, said in a statement after her husband was released that “after more than three months,” the family can “finally breathe a sign of relief.”
“We know this ruling does not begin to address the injustices the Trump administration has brought upon our family, and so many others the government is trying to silence for speaking out against Israel’s ongoing genocide against Palestinians,” Abdalla said in a statement per the ACLU. “But today we are celebrating Mahmoud coming back to New York to be reunited with our little family, and the community that has supported us since the day he was unjustly taken for speaking out for Palestinian freedom.”
Trump administration responds
The Department of Homeland Security noted that Khalil’s release came on the same day that an immigration judge denied him bond, and called Farbiarz a “rogue district judge” on X.
“This is yet another example of how out of control members of the judicial branch are undermining national security,” DHS said. The agency maintained that “the Trump Administration acted well within its statutory and constitutional authority to detain Khalil.”
“An immigration judge has already vindicated this position,” DHS said. “We expect a higher court to do the same.”
While Khalil had to surrender his passport, he will get his green card back as well as documents that allow him limited travel within the United States to visit family and for court appearances, the AP wrote.
Others detained after pro-Palestine activism
Since Khalil’s arrest, several others were also targeted over their pro-Palestine activism, including fellow former Columbia student Mohsen Mahdawi. Tufts University student Rümeysa Öztürk was arrested and detained after she wrote a school newspaper opinion article criticizing the university’s response to the Israel-Hamas war.
Badar Khan Suri, a postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown University, was arrested and accused by DHS of spreading “Hamas propaganda” on social media and having ties to a senior adviser of the militant group. Khan Suri’s attorney told NBC News he never made pro-Hamas or antisemitic posts, and the outlet said he also denied going to protests.
While his father-in-law, Ahmed Yousef, is a former adviser to late Hamas leader Ismail Haniyeh, NBC wrote that Khan Suri has not spoken to his wife’s father since 2003. In a New York Times interview from March 2025, Yousef said he left the adviser position more than ten years ago, and has since been vocal about criticizing Hamas.
Mahdawi, Öztürk and Khan Suri have all been released from custody.
