Sept. 17 (UPI) — An immigration judge has ordered former Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil to either Algeria or Syria, court documents filed Wednesday show, as his lawyers argue the Trump administration is ramping up its retaliation against the Palestinian activist.
Khalil has been at the forefront of the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown targeting pro-Palestine activism at universities. He was arrested March 8 for his pro-Palestine speech by the federal government, which has sought to remove him from the country.
He fought his detention in the courts, gaining his freedom in June. But the Trump administration continues its attempt to remove him, despite his wife and children being American citizens, this time on grounds that he omitted or misrepresented information on his green card application. His attorneys described the allegations as “baseless.”
Civil rights organizations, advocates and Trump administration critics argue its targeting of Khalil is an attack on his due process rights in retaliation for expressing his support for Palestine.
In a letter dated Wednesday to U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz, the judge who issued Khalil’s June release, the Palestinian activist’s representation revealed that immigration Judge Jamee Comans ordered Khalil’s removal to either of the two countries Friday when he denied their motion for a waiver to prevent his removal.
The lawyers said Khalil has 30 days from Friday to file an appeal with the Board of Immigration Appeals, and they called on Farbiarz to intervene.
“The only meaningful impediment to Petitioner’s physical removal from the United States would be this Court’s important order prohibiting removal during the pendency of his federal habeas case,” Khalil’s representation said.
Farbiarz, a President Joe Biden-appointee, had ordered Khalil’s release from federal immigration detention in June after denying the government’s argument that the former Columbia University graduate student was a threat to U.S. foreign policy.
The Trump administration is now seeking his removal alleging Khalil omitted or misrepresented information on his green card application, specifically not mentioning his previous internship with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East, better known as UNRWA.
The letter to Farbiarz on Wednesday states Comans denied Khalil’s request for a waiver against his removal without conducting an evidentiary hearing.
His lawyers also said Khalil was denied the waiver because of the alleged misrepresentation to adjust his immigration without the opportunity to present contrary evidence. Instead, the judge relied on Secretary of State Marco Rubio‘s statement that Khalil’s presence in the country is a threat to U.S. foreign policy to justify the denial.
“It’s no surprise that the Trump administration continues to retaliate against me for my exercise of free speech,” Khalil said in a statement provided by the American Civil Liberties Union.
“Their latest attempt, through kangaroo immigration court, exposes their true colors once again.”
He accused the Trump administration of “fabricating baseless and ridiculous allegations” against him following its first failed attempt to deport him to try and silence his speech in support of Palestine.
“Such fascist tactics will never deter me from continuing to advocate for my people’s liberation,” he said.