A federal judge ruled Tuesday that Mahmoud Khalil, a former green card holder who led pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University where pamphlets written by Hamas state media were distributed, could challenge the Trump administration’s right to detain him for deportation.
District Judge Michael Farbiarz ruled that Khalil’s lawsuit against the government must be heard. Khalil’s lawsuit against the Trump administration is focused on a habeas corpus petition challenging the legality of his detention.
“Today we moved one step closer to vindicating Mr. Khalil’s rights by challenging his unlawful detention and the administration’s unconstitutional and retaliatory actions against him,” Amy Greer, one of Khalil’s attorneys, said in a statement, according to ABC News.
The New Jersey lawsuit differs from a separate Louisiana case involving the Columbia University graduate, whose green card the government revoked this year. Earlier this month, a Louisiana judge ruled that the government holds the right to deport Khalil, whom the Trump administration is attempting to deport due in part to concerns about his involvement in protests it said promoted Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist group.
Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem celebrated the Louisiana ruling, telling Khalil, “Good riddance.”
“It is a privilege to be granted a visa or green card to live and study in the United States of America,” she said. “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.”
Khalil’s New Jersey lawsuit against the Trump administration represents his last resort to resist deportation. The ruling means he can continue to stay in the U.S. and attempt to stop the White House from deporting him on the basis that doing so violates the First Amendment right to free speech.
JUDGE RULES TRUMP ADMINISTRATION CAN DEPORT COLUMBIA STUDENT MAHMOUD KHALIL
In addition to pointing to Khalil’s participation in a Columbia University pro-Palestinian demonstration where pamphlets written by Hamas state media were distributed, the Trump administration has accused the graduate student of lying about his association with a controversial United Nations agency when he applied for his green card.
Khalil covered up his employment by the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, which has been linked to Hamas, and also withheld from his visa application that he belonged to Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a pro-Palestinian student group, according to the Justice Department.