Court Delivers Bad News to Former Columbia Student

A federal appeals panel on Thursday reversed a lower court decision that released former Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil from an immigration jail, bringing the government one step closer to detaining and ultimately deporting the Palestinian activist. The three-judge panel of the 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals didn't rule on the key issue in Khalil's case: whether the Trump administration's effort to throw Khalil out of the US over his campus activism and criticism of Israel is unconstitutional.

• But in its 2-1 decision, the panel ruled a federal judge in New Jersey didn't have jurisdiction to decide the matter at this time, the AP reports. Federal law requires the case to fully move through the immigration courts first, before Khalil can challenge the decision, they wrote.

• "That scheme ensures that petitioners get just one bite at the apple—not zero or two," the panel wrote. "But it also means that some petitioners, like Khalil, will have to wait to seek relief for allegedly unlawful government conduct." The law bars Khalil "from attacking his detention and removal in a habeas petition," the panel added.
• It was not clear whether the government would seek to detain Khalil, a legal permanent resident, again while his legal challenges continue. Thursday's decision marked a major win for the Trump administration's sweeping campaign to detain and deport noncitizens who joined protests against Israel.
• Baher Azmy, an attorney for Khalil, called the ruling disappointing and "contrary to rulings of other federal courts." He noted the panel's finding concerned a "hypertechnical jurisdictional matter," rather than the legality of the Trump administration's policy. "Our legal options are by no means concluded, and we will fight with every available avenue," he added, saying Khalil would remain free pending the full resolution of all appeals, which could take months or longer. Khalil's lawyers can request the active judges on the 3rd Circuit hear an appeal, or they can go to the US Supreme Court.

• An outspoken leader of the pro-Palestinian movement at Columbia, Khalil was arrested on March 8, 2025. He then spent three months detained in a Louisiana immigration jail, missing the birth of his firstborn. His wife is a US citizen.
• Federal officials have accused Khalil of leading activities "aligned to Hamas," though they have not presented evidence to support the claim and have not accused him of criminal conduct. They have also accused Khalil, 30, of failing to disclose information on his green card application. The government has justified the arrest under a seldom-used statute that allows for the expulsion of noncitizens whose beliefs are deemed to pose a threat to US foreign policy interests.
• The decision comes as an appeals board in the immigration court system weighs a previous order that found Khalil could be deported. His attorneys have argued that the federal order should take precedence. That judge has suggested Khalil could be deported to Algeria, where he maintains citizenship through a distant relative, or Syria, where he was born in a refugee camp to a Palestinian family. His attorneys have said he faces mortal danger if forced to return to either country.