Federal agents describe unusual run-up to arrests of Pro-Palestinian academics
'I didn't see anything in the op-ed that suggested she'd committed a crime,' Cunningham said.
McCormack, the agent involved in Khalil's arrest, said department leadership instructed his office to surveil Khalil and 'establish a pattern of life' for his apprehension. The requests prompted McCormack to consult with William Joyce, the head of ICE's Enforcement and Removal Operations field office in New York, which typically handles deportation-related matters.
'We historically in recent times had not enforced those laws,' said McCormack, a deputy special agent in charge in New York. 'I wanted to confirm there was a legal basis for arrest.'
Asked why the usual personnel didn't handle the arrest, which eventually took place in a hallway of Khalil's Manhattan apartment building, McCormack was stumped.
'I'm not sure why. … I wondered why HSI was effecting this arrest and not ERO,' he said. 'I still don't know.'
The agents said the arrests followed standard procedures: They handcuffed the academics and ushered them into unmarked vehicles.
All four agents said they were never informed that the academics were being targeted for deportation due to their pro-Palestinian views, their criticism of Israel or for their political views — the central claim in the lawsuit. The agents said they carried out the arrests because the academics' visas or green cards had been revoked and because of Rubio's determination that their presence was at odds with U.S. foreign policy.
There was no testimony Tuesday on the basis for Rubio's decisions. Testimony from a top State Department official who could shed light on that subject, John Armstrong, is on hold due to a temporary stay an appeals court issued in a dispute about the confidentiality of documents detailing the investigations into the academics.
The HSI agents did testify about some agents' use of masks when making arrests, a practice that has drawn outrage from some immigrant rights advocates. They said that before the Covid pandemic masking was uncommon, although it took place occasionally when undercover agents were asked to help with more routine operations.
Now, agents mask more often out of fear of doxxing on social media, the officials said. HSI policy doesn't require or forbid masks, they said.
'In the age of camera phones and the ability of people to identify those agents, people want to protect themselves if they're members of this community or they live here,' Cunningham said.
Cunningham said it was 'common practice' for agents to identify themselves when making an arrest and he assumes it was done when Öztürk was arrested, although he conceded he wasn't there. 'I don't know what was said to her,' he said.
The trial, taking place before U.S. District Judge William Young without a jury, is expected to resume Thursday.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Los Angeles Times
a few seconds ago
- Los Angeles Times
Hunger-striking women demand Israel return the body of Palestinian activist killed in settler clash
UMM AL-KHAIR, West Bank — Nearly two dozen Bedouin women, enrobed in black, sat on the floor of a modest hut that baked under the desert sun of the Israeli-occupied West Bank. The room was quiet, the women still. The women are on a hunger strike to call for Israeli authorities to release the body of a beloved community leader killed during a clash with a Jewish settler last week. They say they will continue until the man's remains are returned for burial in his hometown of Umm al-Khair. Witnesses said Awdah Al Hathaleen was shot and killed by a radical Israeli settler during a confrontation caught on video. Israeli authorities said they would only return the body if the family agrees to certain conditions that would 'prevent public disorder.' The villagers say those include limiting attendance for a funeral that would normally draw hundreds and burying him at night in a nearby city. 'We want him to be buried here in Umm al-Khair and have a respectable funeral without any conditions. What did we do to deserve this treatment? We did nothing,' said his mother, Khadra Hathaleen, 65, who is among the dozens of women, aged 15-70, from the village who are on strike. The hunger strike, in its sixth day Tuesday, marks a rare public protest by a group of Bedouin women accustomed to mourning in private. Their move reflects their anger over Awdah's death as well as what they perceive as Israel's attempt to dictate unreasonable conditions that violate their customs, beliefs, and right to the land beneath them. But beyond that, they say they have been forced to speak up after repeated settler attacks and Israeli raids have targeted their husbands, sons and fathers. Adding to their outrage, the settler suspected in the shooting, Yinon Levi, was quickly released by an Israeli court from his house arrest. The plight of Palestinians in this area of the West Bank, known as Masafer Yatta, was featured in 'No Other Land,' an Oscar-winning documentary about settler violence and life under Israeli military rule. Al Hathaleen, a political activist and an English teacher, was a contributor to the film and close friend of its Palestinian co-directors. It documents life in a region where Jewish residents are building new settlements and expanding old ones on hilltops ringing Palestinian villages — all while Israeli military bulldozers arrive frequently to demolish Palestinian homes they say amount to illegal construction. Palestinians say its nearly impossible to secure Israeli permits to build on their lands. Four Palestinians have been killed by settlers this year, according to UN data. Witnesses said that the confrontation that led to Al Hathaleen's death began after settler excavators began digging on village land. Some Palestinians threw stones after one excavator injured a young man from the village, witnesses said. The Israeli military said that during the confrontation Palestinians hurled rocks at an Israeli civilian, who opened fire toward the 'terrorists.' Levi, a well known settler who is under international sanctions for violence toward Palestinians, was briefly arrested last week. He was quickly freed from house arrest, with a judge ruling there was no proof that Levi fired the fatal bullets. Video shot by a Palestinian witness showed Levi firing a gun twice and tussling with a group of unarmed Palestinians. In the footage, Levi accused the group of throwing rocks at him. It did not show where his shots landed. But residents said that he fired the bullet that hit Al Hathaleen in the chest, and that no one else in the encounter was armed. Israeli military and police did not respond to requests for comment on who else could have fired the fatal shot. Levi could not be reached for comment; multiple calls to his phone went unanswered. Since the killing, Israeli forces returned to the village and arrested 18 men. Villagers said at least one remains in jail — the hunger strikers are also demanding his release. On Monday, a week after Al Hathaleen was killed, Levi was back within eyesight of the village, the sound of his excavators pummeling the ground audible from the hut where the hunger-striking women sat. To Sara Hathaleen, it was a reminder of the village's vulnerability. 'They come at 2 o'clock or 3 o'clock in the morning,' said the 39-year-old, who is Al Hathaleen's sister-in-law. 'It's like a horror, because we hear their cars and we know that they are coming for us. We don't know who will be next, or who they will take next.' Most of Umm al-Khair's residents are related — some closely, some distantly — and nearly all share the surname Hathaleen. Al Hathaleen and his wife use an alternate spelling. Sara Hathaleen said her own husband, Aziz, was detained by Israel after the killing and released Tuesday. 'We want to have a voice and to take part,' she said. 'The men are hurt by settlers or taken by the army, put in prison, and are not available.' Three of the women on strike — Al Hathaleen's mother, sister and widow — have needed medical attention, according to Sara Hathaleen. Israeli military and police did not respond to requests for comment on the strike. Myassar Hathaleen, 32, sat in the fasting hut with the other women. Since she stopped eating, her breast milk has dried up and she wakes at night to her infant crying to be breastfed. Her brother, Hamid, was arrested the day Al Hathaleen was killed and he has not yet been released. 'We're striking because the world needs to wake up,' said Myassar. 'We don't want to make any problems. We just want to live in justice, and in silence.' Hanady Al Hathaleen, 24, said that she will settle for nothing less than a proper burial for her husband in his hometown. 'Awdah was killed here because he was resistant, in his own way,' she said. 'He was killed here and he must be buried here. The land of Umm al-Khair drinks from his blood.' Frankel writes for the Associated Press.
The Hill
a few seconds ago
- The Hill
Israel's mission to destroy Hamas is destroying its own reputation
Any discussion about ending the conflict in Gaza must acknowledge that Israel launched the war to safeguard the lives of its people. The events of Oct. 7 showed what Hamas is capable of, and the world should understand Israel's need to ensure an event like that never happens again. Israeli actions have been effective, and the country has achieved the short-term objective of denying Hamas the ability to threaten its citizens. Beyond that short-term goal, Israel is seeking to eliminate Hamas completely and remove the threat from Gaza forever. But there's no such thing as forever in geopolitics. Often, the best a state can do is manage situations with skill and tenacity until the underlying circumstances change. This was true for the U.S. during the Cold War, and it's true for a state like South Korea today. By seeking a permanent solution rather than accepting a limited victory, Israel is now doing more harm than good. Global sympathy continues to shift toward the Palestinians, and this is having an effect on the actions of governments, as more countries take the consequential step of recognizing a Palestinian State. Images of emaciated children in Gaza are searing into people's minds, even if not all of those images are presented accurately. These are the types of images that aren't easily forgotten — the type that endure for generations. Israel's decision to pause daytime military operations and allow more aid to reach Gaza was a necessary step in the right direction. It acknowledged that world opinion is turning decisively against Israel, even if the Israeli government continues to deny the existence of a humanitarian crisis. Israel is right that Hamas could end the fighting if it surrendered and left Gaza. Hamas's refusal is completely in keeping with its brutalist worldview, articulated by former leader Yahya Sinwar when he explained that Palestinian suffering was necessary to advance Hamas's political objectives. He then did everything he could to bring that suffering about. An organization like that won't ever make decisions in the best interests of its people. Hamas is disinclined to accept Israel's cease-fire conditions because it is a mafia-like organization more than a government with an army. Its primary interest is always the maintenance of power and privilege, and it's difficult to imagine it leaving Gaza voluntarily. If Hamas will not do what's right for the Palestinian people, that leaves only one actor capable of stopping the bloodshed. Halting military operations will be a gut-wrenching decision for Israel. The Israeli people would struggle to accept the continued existence of a terrorist organization guilty of rape and murder. As unsatisfying as the survival of Hamas will be, there isn't a good alternative. At some point, every successful country needs to substitute the rational for the emotional and recognize the limits of its power. Israel cannot continue to prosecute this war without irreparably damaging its international reputation. It must accept that fact, and it must halt the fighting. Already Israel's relationship with much of the European and American electorate is damaged and getting worse. The country is becoming a partisan issue in the U.S., where it once enjoyed near total bipartisan support. Even Republicans who have been steadfast in their support are beginning to waver. In early August, 24 Democratic senators voted to withhold military aid from Israel. Americans who unconditionally support Israel can accuse those who don't of being naïve or antisemitic. Maybe some of them are. In the end, what should matter to Israel is the reality that many Americans are changing their view of the country, risking the special relationship that's done so much to sustain Israel since its founding. Hamas is severely degraded even if it isn't destroyed. Its ability to threaten Israeli civilians is limited. Israel should accept the reality that it can't eliminate Hamas before global support for its actions collapse and shift its strategy accordingly. It should withdraw from most of Gaza and then robustly control the Israel-Gaza border. Oct. 7 was only effective, after all, because of the brittleness of Israeli defenses. Israel's intelligence and surveillance capabilities are formidable, even if that day showed they aren't invincible, and it's unlikely the country will be caught off guard again. Israeli military action in Gaza has been successful, if success is defined as making Israel safe in the near term. Trying to make Israel safe forever is a luxury it can't afford because of the constraints imposed by world opinion. Israel seemed to acknowledge this constraint with its decision to airdrop supplies and establish new aid corridors, but it's wrong to think these measures will turn the tide of global views. The U.S. should help Israel realize that continuing the war in Gaza is no longer in its best interest. The Israeli military has already returned the country to safety and continuing the conflict will lead to negative and far-reaching changes to Israel's relationship with the world. Israeli leaders need to weigh that outcome against the risk posed by Hamas's continued presence in Gaza. They're miscalculating if they conclude that global public sentiment matters less than the residual military threat from Hamas. By pursuing its maximalist aim, Israel is risking its standing in the world and its reputation as a moral actor. Because the nation self-identifies as the world's only Jewish state, perception of its actions plays a role in how Jewish people are seen around the world. Already, animosity toward Jews is rising. Sinwar knew that the way to hurt Israel was to create a situation where Palestinian children suffered and starved. By perpetuating the war in Gaza, the Israeli government is following Sinwar's script. This can't be in the best long-term interests of the country.
Politico
2 minutes ago
- Politico
Will feds weigh in on religious vax carveouts?
Driving the Day RELIGIOUS VAX EXEMPTIONS — It's back-to-school season, which means parents are shuttling their kids to pediatricians for annual checkups — and advocates for and against states' exemptions to vaccine mandates for school entry are gearing up for a fight, Lauren reports. Vaccine skeptics have sought to make their case to the Trump administration's Religious Liberty Commission — created by executive order in May — for executive action to bolster religious carve-outs. But they face pushback from public health experts who warn that more exemptions could threaten public health, setting up another front in the vaccine wars. Four states — California, Connecticut, Maine and New York — don't offer religious exemptions to school vaccine requirements, and Massachusetts lawmakers are considering banning them. West Virginia provides exemptions after GOP Gov. Patrick Morrisey signed an executive order earlier this year invoking the state's religious freedom law. Some religious liberty groups have called on the federal government — which has no say in state vaccine mandates — to use federal education funding as leverage to expand religious opt-outs from school immunization requirements, pointing to a Clinton-era religious protection statute. Precedential web: Some vaccine law experts question how far the executive branch could go to nudge those outlier states toward accepting religious exemptions. The Supreme Court curtailed the Religious Freedom Restoration Act's application to the states in 1997, and administrative conditions on federal funding can't run afoul of Congress' directions. But proponents say those lawyers ignore more recent opinions that work in exemption advocates' favor, pointing to a Covid-19-era decision lifting in-home gathering restrictions on religious grounds and, more recently, the court's ruling in favor of parents who want to opt their children out of LGBTQ+-themed lessons in public schools. Shifting winds: The number of kindergarteners entering school with at least one vaccine exemption continues to tick up, with the CDC reporting last week that 3.6 percent had one in the 2024-2025 school year, compared with 2.2 percent a decade ago. Days before the updated data was released, the American Academy of Pediatrics reaffirmed its opposition to religious exemptions, arguing they should be abolished to protect public health. 'In practice, nonmedical exceptions based on religious belief can substantially limit the public health value of vaccine requirements for school attendance,' the group said in a statement. 'There is no practicable way for schools or other involved community partners to distinguish fairly among religious or other nonmedical claims.' What's next: The Religious Liberty Commission will hold a hearing next month on public education issues, giving exemption proponents another opening to make their case. It's unclear where the White House stands on the concept — a spokesperson didn't comment — but the first Trump administration's HHS pursued avenues to grant health care workers expanded 'conscience' protections and to allow imports of certain vaccines due to some patients' religious beliefs. IT'S TUESDAY. WELCOME BACK TO PRESCRIPTION PULSE. Your host is wondering whether concerns about a common allergy medicine's risks might catch the FDA's attention. Send tips to David Lim (dlim@ @davidalim or davidalim.49 on Signal) and Lauren Gardner (lgardner@ @Gardner_LM or gardnerlm.01 on Signal). Eye on the FDA NEW TOP LAWYER — FDA Commissioner Marty Makary named a longtime government attorney on Monday to be the agency's chief counsel, months after his first pick was torpedoed by Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.). Sean Keveney, who most recently served as HHS's acting general counsel, served as a career civil servant at DOJ's civil rights division before becoming deputy general counsel at HHS in 2019, according to the department and his LinkedIn profile. His predecessor in the position, Hilary Perkins, was also a career DOJ lawyer whose appointment drew Hawley's ire before Makary's confirmation because of her record defending the Biden administration's abortion pill policies. While Perkins also defended the Trump FDA's mifepristone positions, that wasn't enough to overcome his opposition, and she ultimately stepped down days into the job. MDUFA KICKOFF — The FDA's medical device user fee program is not set to expire until Sept. 30, 2027, but the process to renew it has already begun. Despite HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s vocal distaste for the user fee programs, the Trump administration has made it clear they are committed to the monthslong process that will likely result in their renewal for another five years. Industry and FDA leaders — including FDA Commissioner Marty Makary and Center for Devices and Radiological Health Director Michelle Tarver — met Monday to discuss the potential sixth iteration of the medical device user fee program. 'While user fees support timeliness and predictability by providing FDA with additional resources, user fees are not a guarantee of approval,' AdvaMed's senior executive vice president, Janet Trunzo, said according to prepared remarks. 'They never have been, and they never should be.' In Congress SENATE PASSES FDA FUNDING — Before leaving town for the August recess, the Senate passed a bill to fund the FDA for fiscal 2026 as part of a minibus package by an 87-9 vote. The legislation, which funds the agency at $7 billion, is made up of $3.6 billion in taxpayer funds and $3.4 billion in user fee revenues. But it is unclear whether lawmakers will have to turn to a continuing resolution before government funding runs out at the end of September. The House Appropriations Committee previously advanced an FDA bill that funded the agency at a lower level. Research Corner BOOST FOR WOMEN'S HEALTH — The Gates Foundation said Monday it would spend $2.5 billion through 2030 to speed global women's research into maternal, menstrual, gynecological and sexual health. Pharma Moves Erika Sward is now chief advocacy officer at UsAgainstAlzheimer's. She previously was assistant vice president of national advocacy at the American Lung Association. Document Drawer FDA Commissioner Marty Makary met with Rep. John Joyce (R-Pa.) for an introductory meeting on July 24. He also met with People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals to discuss nonanimal testing approaches on July 21, according to newly posted public calendar disclosures. He also met with the leadership team of the Government Accountability Office on July 16 to discuss 'items of mutual interest.' WHAT WE'RE READING Top FDA cancer medicine regulator Richard Pazdur played a critical role in the rejection of Replimune Group's skin cancer therapy, STAT's Adam Feuerstein reports. Longevity companies are eyeing Montana as a potential hub for 'biohacking' treatments thanks to state laws embracing patients' 'right-to-try' experimental drugs, The Wall Street Journal's Alex Janin writes.
