My name is Mahmoud Khalil and I am a political prisoner: Columbia University student issues first statement after U.S. immigration arrest

Trump administration targets Palestinian activist Khalil for deportation, sparking protests and legal battle over free speech rights.

Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University Palestinian graduate student who the Trump administration is seeking to deport for his role in pro-Palestinian protests, called himself a political prisoner on Tuesday (March 18, 2025), in his first direct comments since his detention.

The detention of Mr. Khalil, a U.S. permanent resident, has been condemned by multiple human rights groups as an assault on free speech and due process. Over 100 Democratic lawmakers from the U.S. House of Representatives have questioned the detention's legality in a letter to the administration of Republican President Donald Trump.

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Justice Department lawyers say Mr. Khalil, 30, was subject to deportation because Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined his U.S. presence could have "adverse foreign policy consequences."

Mr. Khalil's case could test where courts draw the line between protected speech guaranteed to citizens and non-citizens alike under the U.S. Constitution's First Amendment, and the executive branch's view that some protests can undermine foreign policy.

"My name is Mahmoud Khalil and I am a political prisoner," Khalil said in a letter made public on Tuesday.

"My arrest was a direct consequence of exercising my right to free speech as I advocated for a free Palestine and an end to the genocide in Gaza, which resumed in full force Monday night," Khalil said in the letter, referring to the latest renewed Israeli strikes on Gaza that local authorities said killed over 400 Palestinians.