Latest news with #proPalestinian
Reuters
an hour ago
- Politics
- Reuters
Pro-Palestinian foreigners in US arrested by Trump administration and ordered to be released
WASHINGTON, June 20 (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's administration has faced judicial roadblocks while attempting to deport foreign pro-Palestinian students and protesters in the U.S., including on Friday when a judge ordered that Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil be released from immigration custody. Trump has labeled the protesters as antisemitic and extremist sympathizers. Protesters, including some Jewish groups, say the government wrongly conflates their criticism of Israel's assault on Gaza with antisemitism and their advocacy for Palestinian rights with support for extremism. Here are some prominent pro-Palestinian foreigners in the U.S. who were arrested without being charged with a crime, and subsequently ordered to be released by a judge: A prominent figure at Columbia University's pro-Palestinian protests against Israel's war on Gaza, Khalil was arrested by immigration agents in the lobby of his Manhattan university residence on March 8. Khalil, a Palestinian born and raised in a refugee camp in Syria, is a U.S. legal permanent resident and says he was punished for his political speech in violation of the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment, which protects free speech rights. Khalil has previously condemned antisemitism and racism. His wife and son, who was born while Khalil was in prison, are U.S. citizens. In ordering Khalil's release on June 20, U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz said the government made no attempt to rebut evidence provided by Khalil's lawyers that he was not a flight risk nor a danger to the public. Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi was released from U.S. immigration custody on April 30. Mahdawi, born and raised in a refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, was arrested earlier in April as he arrived for an interview for his U.S. citizenship petition. U.S. District Judge Geoffrey Crawford said Mahdawi did not pose a danger to the public and was not a flight risk. The judge drew parallels between the current U.S. political climate and the Red Scare and McCarthyism eras of the last century when thousands were targeted for deportation due to political views. Turkish Tufts University student Rumeysa Ozturk was released in early May after being held in an immigration detention center for over six weeks. Her lawyers said she was punished for co-authoring an opinion piece in a student newspaper that criticized the school's response to calls by students to divest from companies linked to Israel and to "acknowledge the Palestinian genocide." U.S. District Judge William Sessions said Ozturk, whose arrest video went viral, had raised a substantial claim that the sole reason she was being detained was "simply and purely the expression that she made or shared in the op-ed in violation of her First Amendment rights." A postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown University, Suri was released in mid-May, nearly two months after being taken into custody by federal immigration agents. Suri, who is from India and was on a U.S. student visa, is married to an American citizen who is from Gaza. Suri's lawyer denied the government's allegations that he supported Palestinian Islamist group Hamas.
Daily Mail
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Florida lawmaker makes xenophobic comment to Muslim mayoral candidate
A Florida congressman gave a xenophobic analysis of the New York City mayor's race. Rep. Randy Fine (R-Fla.) came out on Friday guns-blazing against Democratic New York State Assemblyman Zohran Mamdani. The lawmaker used the ongoing Israel-Iran conflict to compare Mamdani's potential future leadership style to that of Iran 's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and his predecessor. Mamdani, a rising star in New York City politics, is Muslim and a pro-Palestinian progressive. The Queens politician is running to be the next NYC mayor against incumbent Democratic Mayor Eric Adams, former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo as well as other lesser known candidates like the city's Comptroller Brad Lander and New York City Council Speaker Adrienne Adams. Fine faced backlash on X from those claiming his comments were anti-Muslim. 'You're right, everyone needs to submit to Christianity and accept Jesus Christ as their lord and savior,' one social media user sarcastically quipped. Another sarcastic commenter wrote: 'Agreed. We won't allow any Muslim run any office.' One said that Mamdani is such a flawless candidate that his critics are resorting to 'Islamaphobic retardness.' 'This is bigoted and wholly detached from reality,' wrote an X account on a more serious note. Another user suggested that Fine was in the pocket of the pro-Israel lobby and asked X's Artificial Intelligence Grok to detail contributions made to the Florida lawmaker's campaign from such groups. It revealed that Fine received a combined more than $400,000 from the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), Republican Jewish Coalition (RJC) and NORPAC. The comments from Fine come amid a rise in anti-Semitic sentiment in the U.S. with the ongoing conflict between Israel and Hamas terrorists operating as the de facto government in the Palestinian stronghold of Gaza. And now, Israel is also embroiled in exchanging missile attacks with Iran. On June 12, Israel launched its first barrage against Iran targeting nuclear facilities and military infrastructure and leaders to prevent Tehran from gaining nuclear weapon capabilities. President Donald Trump on Thursday gave himself two weeks to decide whether the U.S. would back Israel and also strike against Iran. Republican lawmakers are split over whether the U.S. should back its ally or stay out of the conflict – with some warning of mutually assured nuclear annihilation.
Arab News
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Arab News
US judge orders release of pro-Palestinian protest leader Mahmoud Khalil
NEW YORK: A federal judge ordered the Trump administration on Friday to release Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University student who became a leader of pro-Palestinian campus protests. Khalil, a legal permanent US resident who is married to a US citizen and has a US-born son, has been in custody since March facing potential deportation. District Judge Michael Farbiarz ordered Khalil's release on bail during a hearing on Friday and he will be allowed to return to New York while his deportation case proceeds. 'After more than three months, we can finally breathe a sigh of relief and know that Mahmoud is on his way home,' his wife, Michigan-born dentist Noor Abdalla, said in a statement. 'We know this ruling does not begin to address the injustices the Trump administration has brought upon our family and so many others the government is trying to silence for speaking out against Israel's ongoing genocide against Palestinians,' added Abdalla, who gave birth to the couple's first child while her husband was in detention. Amol Sinha, executive director of the American Civil Liberties Union of New Jersey, which is among the groups representing Khalil, welcomed the release order. 'This is an important step in vindicating rights as he continues to be unlawfully targeted by the federal government for his advocacy in support of Palestinian rights,' Sinha said. 'We're confident he will ultimately prevail in the fight for his freedom.' Since his March 8 arrest by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, Khalil has become a symbol of President Donald Trump's campaign to stifle pro-Palestinian student activism against the Gaza war, in the name of curbing anti-Semitism. At the time a graduate student at Columbia University in New York, Khalil was one of the most visible leaders of nationwide campus protests against Israel's war in Gaza. Following his arrest, US authorities transferred Khalil, who was born in Syria to Palestinian parents, nearly 2,000 kilometers (1,242 miles) from his home in New York to a detention center in Louisiana, pending deportation. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has invoked a law approved during the 1950s Red Scare that allows the United States to remove foreigners seen as adverse to US foreign policy. Rubio argues that US constitutional protections of free speech do not apply to foreigners and that he alone can make decisions without judicial review. Hundreds of students have seen their visas revoked, with some saying they were targeted for everything from writing opinion articles to minor arrest records. Farbiarz ruled last week that the government could not detain or deport Khalil based on Rubio's assertions that his presence on US soil poses a national security threat. The government has also alleged as grounds to detain and deport Khalil that there were inaccuracies in his application for permanent residency.
The Sun
2 hours ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Heads must roll over pro-Palestinian thugs break-in at RAF Brize Norton
Brize idiots HOW on earth did pro-Palestinian thugs manage to break into RAF Brize Norton to damage two military planes? Breaking through the perimeter fencing is one thing. 1 But why weren't they stopped in their tracks by armed guards before they got anywhere near military assets? Instead, the first hapless commanders heard of it was when Palestine Action gleefully posted their footage online. It's beyond belief that security could be so lax at a time when the base is on high alert over Iran and Russia. Results of a full investigation must be made public and, if necessary, heads should roll. Meanwhile, this wasn't a harmless stunt by a cosy protest group. Palestine Action is made up of dangerous fanatics bent on attacking our country from within on behalf of a foreign cause. Lord Walney, the Government's ex-adviser on political violence, recommended it be outlawed as an extremist political group more than a year ago. The militants have since gone on to terrorise workers at weapons factories and people outside Crown courts. We welcome Home Secretary Yvette Cooper's decision to now proscribe the hate-filled group. The question is: Why did it take so long? Shock moment pro-Palestine protesters break into RAF Brize Norton & spray 2 military planes with paint before escaping Dead loss ASSISTED dying is a deeply emotive and complex issue. In brutal terms, it amounts to state-sanctioned killing. On that basis, it's deeply worrying that Kim Leadbeater's ill-considered private members' bill is now set to become law. It simply does not have enough safeguards, particularly for the vulnerable, poor and disabled. During yesterday's debate, the idea it might allow families to coerce elderly relatives into early deaths was brushed aside as though such a thing could never happen. Fears from hospice carers were also dismissed. The Government has been absent throughout the legislative process and nearly 150 MPs ducked the decision and abstained. Crime associated with illegal migration is of significant public interest and concern in the wake of the Casey report into grooming gangs.
CNN
3 hours ago
- Politics
- CNN
3:30 PM ET: Judge orders release of Mahmoud Khalil - CNN Breaking News Alerts - Podcast on CNN Audio
3:30 PM ET: Judge orders release of Mahmoud Khalil CNN Breaking News Alerts 3:30 PM EDT A pro-Palestinian activist at the center of a long-running deportation fight will be granted release today. Listen for details.
