Columbia graduate had been held for over three months over his activism against Israel’s war in Gaza
A federal judge has ordered the release of Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil from US immigration detention, where he has been held for more than three months over his activism against Israel’s war in Gaza.
Khalil is set to be released from Ice detention in Jena, Louisiana, where he has been held since shortly after plainclothes immigration agents detained him in in early March in the lobby of his Columbia building.
The federal judge, Michael Farbiarz, said during the hearing on Friday that Khalil is not a flight risk, and “is not a danger to the community. Period, full stop.”
“It is highly, highly unusual to be seeking detention of a petitioner given the factual record of today,” Farbiarz also said during the more than hour-long hearing that took place on Friday.
