Judge orders release of anti-Israel activist Khalil amid immigration case

A federal judge on Friday ordered anti-Israel activist Mahmoud Khalil to be released on bail while his immigration and civil cases proceed through the courts, citing the “extraordinary circumstances” of his case.

Judge Michael Farbiarz, a Biden appointee, assessed during a hearing in New Jersey that Khalil was not a flight risk or a danger to the community and that his detention was therefore “highly unusual.”

Khalil’s attorneys had said in a letter to the court that his imprisonment in an immigration detention center in Jena, Louisiana, was an “exceedingly rare” decision on the part of the government and amounted to unconstitutional retaliation.

Khalil, a lawful permanent resident, was arrested in March outside his apartment at Columbia University and immediately filed a habeas corpus lawsuit challenging his detention. He has asked the court to be released on bail or transferred to an immigration facility in New Jersey, where he would be closer to his family and legal team.

DOJ SEEKS TO KEEP ANTI-ISRAEL ACTIVIST KHALIL DETAINED IN LOUISIANA IMMIGRATION JAIL

Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil talks to the press during the press briefing organized by Pro-Palestinian protesters who set up a new encampment at Columbia University’s Morningside Heights campus on Friday evening, in New York City, United States on June 01, 2024.  (Getty Images)

An immigration judge found Khalil was removable based on a memo from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that said Khalil’s activism on campus was at odds with U.S. foreign policy interests.

Rubio cited an obscure provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act to justify his finding, and Farbiarz later enjoined the secretary from using that determination.

But the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) later added a second reason for keeping Khalil detained and attempting to deport him. The DHS said Khalil allegedly omitted key information from his green card application about groups with which he was affiliated, including the Columbia University Apartheid Divest.

Khalil’s case has become a lightning rod for anti-Israel protesters and immigration rights advocates. They have argued the Trump administration is retaliating against him for opposing the Israeli government and chilling free speech of those who oppose Israel’s offensive in the Gaza Strip and conflict with Iran. The government has countered that Khalil violated immigration law by allegedly signaling support for the terrorist group Hamas through his activism.

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Department of Justice (DOJ) attorneys argued to the judge that the federal court did not have authority to free Khalil from detention because the second claim, about his green card papers, is pending before an immigration judge.

“Khalil remains detained because he is currently charged as removable for fraudulently or willfully misrepresenting material facts on his adjustment of status application,” the attorneys wrote in court papers this week.

This is a breaking story. Check back for updates.

Fox News’s Kirill Clark contributed to this report.