An immigration judge in Louisiana on Thursday denied a request to terminate Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil’s deportation proceedings after his attorneys argued that he was arrested illegally and without a warrant over two months ago.
Khalil, a Columbia University graduate student and lawful permanent resident who played a central role in negotiations on behalf of pro-Palestinian student protesters last year, has been in immigration custody since March. He has been detained indefinitely as an immigration judge previously upheld the Trump administration’s decision to deport Khalil and a federal district judge has blocked his immediate removal from the country.
During the Thursday hearing, Judge Jamee Comans denied a government motion that would have prevented Khalil from raising an asylum claim, according to Khalil’s attorneys. Comans also denied motions by Khalil’s attorneys to postpone the hearing to a later date and to subpoena witnesses.
After witnesses provided testimony and Khalil took the stand in his own defense, the lengthy hearing ended Thursday evening without a ruling from the judge.
Comans asked lawyers to submit written closing arguments by June 2. The judge then intends to rule on whether Khalil can be deported from the US and if he’s entitled to any form of relief that would enable him to remain in the country, said Ramzi Kassem, an attorney for Khalil.
Khalil does not “expect any due process from these immigration proceedings,” his attorneys told CNN Thursday night.
“The immigration judge is not an independent judge. She’s an employee of the Department of Justice. She serves at the pleasure of the President. She’s subject to political pressure by the government,” Kassem said.
Just before the immigration court hearing, the Syrian-born Palestinian refugee got to hold his newborn for the first time Thursday at the Louisiana detention center where he has been held, his attorneys told CNN.
Khalil, who hasn’t been charged with a crime, is one of several foreign nationals the Trump administration has accused of posing a national security threat due to alleged ties to terrorist organizations – a claim his attorneys strongly dispute.
His attorneys on Thursday argued the government has engaged in egregious misconduct. The lawyers have challenged the legality of Khalil’s warrantless arrest and say he was targeted for his pro-Palestinian views.
“It’s an attempt, an unsuccessful attempt at that, to silence people who speak up in defense of Palestinian human rights,” Kassem said. “The government has presented no evidence in support of its baseless rhetoric.”
In response to CNN’s request for comment on the hearing, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said: “Mahmoud Kahlil should use the CBP Home app to self-deport.”
Khalil was the first arrestee in the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown targeting student activism. While the White House has backed off the cancellation of hundreds of student visas, Khalil missed the birth of his first son and his Columbia graduation due to his detainment.
Khalil’s detention has sparked protests across the country from supporters who believe his detention is a flagrant violation of core American values, including the protection of free speech.
In the 75 days since his arrest, at least three other international college students have been released from detention after weeks of legal action by their attorneys.
Rümeysa Öztürk, Mohsen Mahdawi and Badar Khan Suri – all targeted for deportation by the Trump administration – challenged the legality of their detentions with flurries of motions and legal briefs in federal district courts. In every case, judges agreed to release them while their immigration court cases play out.
Khalil’s case, in contrast, has dragged on for months as a federal district court in New Jersey and an administrative immigration court in Jena, Louisiana, consider next steps.
“This court has exhibited a worrying lack of independence and fairness towards the important questions regarding the unlawful detention and removal of Mr. Khalil,” Baher Azmy, legal director of the Center for Constitutional Rights and one of Khalil’s attorneys, told CNN on Wednesday.
The government’s strategy seems focused on delaying Khalil’s habeas proceedings, a basic legal process meant to play out in federal court in which a judge has the power to order his release, Khalil’s legal team said Wednesday.
At the same time, the government is working to speed up proceedings of an immigration court within the Department of Justice where judges have limited independence, Khalil’s attorneys said.
“There has been no reason that they’re rushing so fast except to try to get this case over before the federal court judge can do anything. It’s been truly obvious,” said Marc Van Der Hout, another lawyer for Khalil.
Khalil’s plight came up Wednesday during a commencement speech by acting Columbia President Claire Shipman, who was booed by graduates as she walked onto the stage.
“I know many in our community today are mourning the absence of our graduate Mahmoud Khalil,” Shipman said.
During Thursday’s immigration hearing, Khalil’s attorneys renewed their motion to terminate the deportation proceedings, arguing there has been “egregious government misconduct,” including with Khalil’s unlawful arrest without a warrant. The judge denied the motion.
The renewed motion to terminate the case included new video evidence his lawyers say contradicts the government’s claim that officers did not need a warrant for Khalil’s arrest because they believed he was a flight risk.
The footage shows Khalil made no apparent attempt to flee and did not refuse to cooperate with immigration officers who arrested him in the lobby of his building – a claim Justice Department attorneys have made in court. CNN exclusively reported on the never-before-seen video of the arrest this week.
“We have now caught the government in three direct lies, some of them to the court,” Van Der Hout said. CNN has reached out to ICE and the Department of Homeland Security for comment.
Khalil’s legal team also filed hundreds of pages of new evidence against his removal. The filings, obtained and reviewed by CNN, include declarations from Khalil’s professors and classmates – including Jewish students and academics – attest to his character, as well as expert declarations that Khalil is likely to be a target of a foreign government or be subject to dangerous persecution if he is deported from the US.
“We’re going to get through as much testimony as we can in the morning, and we’re feeling quite confident that the evidence shows there is a likelihood that Mahmoud would be subjected to egregious harm,” Johnny Sinodis, an immigration attorney for Khalil, told reporters Wednesday.
Khalil’s legal team has filed an application for asylum to prevent his removal. Justice Department attorneys have signaled their intention to block the application, citing concerns Khalil is a national security threat.
Khalil’s attorneys say they likely will appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals. Separately, a restraining order issued by a federal judge in New Jersey would prevent his removal until the federal case is resolved.
The Trump administration has relied on a rarely used portion of US immigration law to argue Khalil should be deported because his presence in the United States threatens the administration’s foreign policy goal of combatting antisemitism.
An immigration judge in April ruled Khalil could be deported after the government argued his presence posed “potentially serious foreign policy consequences.” His attorneys argue the government’s evidence is insufficient and based solely on a letter from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that does not allege criminal activity. They contend Khalil is being targeted for his political speech, a First Amendment violation.
Khalil’s legal team and Abdalla earlier this week had been denied permission from ICE officials in Jena, Louisiana, for a contact visit with Khalil, his wife and their newborn son before Thursday’s hearing. Officials cited a blanket policy against contact visits, his attorneys said.
“After flying over a thousand miles to Louisiana with our newborn son, his very first flight, all so his father could finally hold him in his arms, ICE has denied us even this most basic human right,” Abdalla said in a statement. “This is not just heartless. It is deliberate violence, the calculated cruelty of a government that tears families apart without remorse.”
A federal district judge in New Jersey ordered immigration authorities to allow an in-person meeting before 10:30 a.m. CT Thursday among Khalil, his lawyers and his wife. The order does not require the facility to allow Khalil’s newborn son to attend, although a letter from his attorney said their wish for the meeting was “so that he can hold his newborn child for the first time.” The detention facility allowed the infant to be admitted, Khalil’s attorneys said.
“The facility and its officials may take reasonably necessary security measures,” US District Judge Michael Farbiarz wrote in his order.
Khalil visited in person with his son, along with his US citizen wife and without attorneys.
“This was Mr. Khalil’s first chance at holding his newborn child, who was born a month ago. And it’s really sad that we had to go to court to get that,” Kassem told CNN’s Boris Sanchez Thursday afternoon. “I’m sure that it was a bittersweet moment…because they remain apart.”
