Trump Team Blocks Columbia Protester's Release; Judge Rules, Then Hits Pause
New York: A federal judge in New York on June 11 told the President Donald Trump administration that it cannot keep holding Columbia student Mahmoud Khalil just because he joined a protest. But in a twist straight out of a legal thriller, the judge also delayed his release.
Khalil had led pro-Palestinian demonstrations, sweeping US campuses this year. For weeks, the Trump administration has tried to paint him as a threat tied to foreign policy interests. On Wednesday, Judge Michael Farbiarz ruled that argument does not hold water.
But there is a catch.
Even after calling the detention unlawful, the judge said Khalil will stay in custody for now. The ruling will not kick in until June 13 morning. That gives Trump's team time to push back or possibly appeal. In the meantime, Khalil remains behind bars.
This is not the first time the administration has been called out for its crackdown on student protesters. Just last week, the same court stopped efforts to deport 21-year-old Columbia student Yunseo Chung to South Korea – a country she has not lived in since childhood – all because she joined a peaceful demonstration earlier this year.
The two cases have spotlighted what critics are calling a pattern – using immigration law to intimidate or punish dissent. Legal experts say these rulings could set important limits on what the government can do to non-citizens who speak out.
Khalil's wife, Noor Abdalla, a Columbia grad student herself, told Reuters the wait has been agonising. She posed for a portrait just after the hearing, capturing the heavy mix of hope and uncertainty hanging over their lives.
As the clock ticks down to Friday's deadline, all eyes are on whether Trump's legal team doubles down or backs off. Either way, the battle over speech, protest and immigration enforcement just got a new face.
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