Chicago – June 20, 2025
A federal judge has ordered the release of Mahmoud Khalil from immigration custody, more than three months after he was arrested by immigration agents. Khalil, a student, was the first person targeted for deportation under President Trump’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian protesters.
During a phone hearing on Friday, Judge Michael Farbiarz of the U.S. District Court in New Jersey called the government’s effort to keep Khalil in detention “highly, highly, highly unusual.” Farbiarz had previously ruled that Khalil’s arrest and detention over his pro-Palestinian activism at Columbia University was likely unconstitutional.
This ruling is a big win for Khalil, who is the last noncitizen student still in federal custody after several others were arrested for their campus activism. Khalil is a legal permanent resident, married to a U.S. citizen, and their first child was born in April while he was detained.
