Trump administration sparks outrage over arrest of Palestinian Columbia student

Social media users, human rights activists and free speech advocates have expressed outrage after a recently-graduated Columbia University student was detained by immigration authorities for participating in protests against Israel on the institution's campus.

Mahmoud Khalil, who is a permanent resident of the US, was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on Saturday when he arrived at his home at a student resident facility with his wife, who is eight months pregnant.

As he was being detained, he was told that his student visa was being revoked. Khalil's wife showed the agents his green card to prove that her husband, who graduated from a master's programme in December, was not on a visa, but an agent replied that the green card would then be revoked. 

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said in a social media post it had arrested Khalil because he has "led activities aligned to Hamas", without elaborating further.

On March 9, 2025, in support of President Trump’s executive orders prohibiting anti-Semitism, and in coordination with the Department of State, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia University graduate student. Khalil led activities…

— Homeland Security (@DHSgov) March 10, 2025

Khalil's arrest comes shortly after the State Department announced its plans to use AI to revoke the visas of foreign students who are deemed "pro-Hamas".

'This is a system test'

News of Khalil's arrest caused a flood on social media this week, with thousands saying that it sets a dangerous precedent not only for the protection of immigrants in the US who advocate for Palestine but for all freedom of speech. 

Everyone should be shouting from the rooftops demanding the release of Mahmoud Khalil. No one is safe in a nation where you can be disappeared for protesting. It won't end with immigrants on green cards. This is a system test. Soon enough, they'll find a way to come for you too.

— Chris Sosa (@ChrisSosa) March 9, 2025

An Action Network petition was released shortly after news of his detention, and it received over a million signatures in just one day. Khalil was among the prominent faces of the Columbia University encampment in April 2024, as he served as a negotiator for the students. 

Columbia students and friends who know him personally have repeatedly said Khalil is very kind and is not the violent "threat" that the DHS claims him to be. 

“Mahmoud Khalil is a kind, tireless advocate for justice," one student wrote on X. "The best person to have during a crisis. I will never forget freaking out when Columbia threatened the national guard on us during the encampment. Mahmoud was the voice of reason. His kidnapping is heartbreaking.” 

Another student also posted that Khalil was a grounding presence during campus protests. 

"As a jewish student at columbia I can say without a single doubt in my mind that Mahmoud is one of the kindest, safest, most welcoming people I have ever encountered at this university. His presence brought an instant calm no matter how intense things were."

In addition to criticism of the Trump administration, Columbia students directed their anger towards their university - which many say cooperated with DHS in arresting Khalil.

In a press statement, Columbia said it is "committed to complying with all legal obligations and supporting our student body and campus community".

Columbia facilitated the abduction of Mahmoud Khalil from his home as his pregnant wife watched, following orders from the White House- despite Mahmoud being a lawful green card holder. His crime? Protesting against the genocide of his people. Raise hell for Mahmoud.

— Fatima Mohammed (@fatima__m7md) March 9, 2025

Others online are urging Columbia faculty to take action to stop what could potentially become a norm on campus. 

"Either you are on the side of human rights, or you are on the side of the Israeli regime and its apartheid & genocide," former UN human rights official Craig Mokhiber posted on X.

"History will judge harshly those who remain complicit through their silence. Your silence is not free - the cost to your reputation, to Columbia’s future, and to the well being of your students will be enormous. Speak up now, loudly and publicly."

Multiple organisations, like the New York Civil Liberties Union (NYCLU) have issued statements slamming the Trump administration for its "extreme attack on his First Amendment rights" and  "aggressive abuse of immigration law". 

"The unlawful detention of Mr Khalil reeks of McCarthyism," NYCLU said in a statement on Sunday."

“Ripping a student from their home, challenging their immigration status, and detaining them solely based on political viewpoint will chill student speech and advocacy across campus. Political speech should never be a basis of punishment, or lead to deportation."

The National Students for Justice in Palestine (NSJP) also issued a statement calling upon students and faculty to participate in a day of action on Tuesday. 

"Our message to every university in this country is clear: succumbing to federal pressure by repressing your students will not save you." 
 
Khalil's arrest comes just days after the Trump administration announced that Columbia University will lose $400m in federal grants and contracts over accusations it has not done enough to combat antisemitism.

Palestine historian Zachary Foster pointed out on X that despite Columbia's crackdown on pro-Palestine activism, the university is still being reprimanded for not doing "enough". 

If you are a Columbia student, & you organize against genocide, they ship you off to prison and reportedly seek to strip you of your residency rights.

If you are a Columbia president, & invite the former Prime Minister of an apartheid state who worked to entrench the apartheid,…

— Zachary Foster (@_ZachFoster) March 9, 2025

Many online are echoing the sentiment that Khalil's arrest represents something bigger than the issue of freedom of speech for students or immigrants: it is to suppress all pro-Palestine activism. 

On Monday, Trump said that Khalil's arrest would be "the first of many to come" and that the administration "will find, apprehend, and deport these terrorist sympathizers from our country - never to return again".

One social media user posted: "I should point out—not that it needs pointing out, but maybe—that Mahmoud Khalil’s arrest is intended to make an example of him and intimidate us all from speaking out about Palestine. And we should never stop speaking out about Palestine. Because they would like nothing better," one social media user posted."

A Palestinian social media user posted about their frustration with the ongoing escalation against the Palestinian community both in occupied Palestine and in the diaspora. 

"So we can't live in Palestine (freely or alive), can't live in the US (freely), can't live in refugee camps (they're being destroyed), can't live. That's the end goal. To disappear the Palestinian people."