Mahmoud Khalil wants to 'hold accountable' Trump officials who sought his deportation
Following his release from immigration detention, Palestine activist and Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil wants those in the Trump administration who sought his deportation to be held responsible.
"I want to make sure that everyone who contributed to my arrest will be held accountable," he told National Public Radio in one of his first interviews since being released on Friday.
"That's something I'm also looking forward to, because now I can defend myself."
Mr Khalil, a legal US resident who played a prominent role in pro-Palestine campus protests last year, had been held in Louisiana since his March arrest.
His detention was part of the administration of President Donald Trump's crackdown on so-called anti-Semitism on university campuses. The administration has deemed pro-Palestine protests to fall under this umbrella.
The White House had accused Mr Khalil of spreading Hamas propaganda at the protests.
The State Department revoked his green card under a little-used provision of immigration law granting the Secretary of State the power to seek the deportation of any non-citizen whose presence in the country is considered adverse to US foreign policy interests.
His release on bail came after a series of legal challenges over the past few months.
'[The] petitioner is not a flight risk,' Judge Michael Farbiarz said on Friday. 'He's also not a danger to the community.'
Mr Khalil was ultimately detained for 104 days. During that time, he missed the birth of his son.
"Missing the birth of Deen, I believe that was the most tragic event that happened to me in my life, and last month, after so much pressure, they allowed me to hold him for an hour," the activist told NPR.
Mr Khalil has described himself as a political prisoner and said his arrest was indicative of anti-Palestinian racism in the US.
He told NPR that his legal issues have little to do with the law, and more to do with chilling free speech on the topic of Palestine.
"They want the protests to stop because they expose this administration's and this government's hypocrisy when it comes to human rights, when it comes to self-determination," he said, adding that the Department of Homeland Security has yet to accuse him of breaking any laws.
"They absolutely showed me nothing. They had over 100 days to do that, and I dare Trump, [Secretary of State Marco] Rubio, and their administration to substantiate these claims with anything, because they did not refer to anything," he explained.
Mr Khalil has since rejoined protests at Columbia University.
Meanwhile, the Trump White House has said it plans to appeal against the decision to release him from custody and has claimed that Mr Khalil lied on application for a green card. He has denied this claim.
"Trump basically thinks that he creates the law and people should follow," Mr Khalil said.
"So, the fact that the federal judge ordered my release meant that Trump is basically no king."
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