Latest news with #pro-Hamas'
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Palestinian student Mohsen Mahdawi's release offers hope amid Trump crackdown
Pro-Palestinian students detained by immigration authorities saw their biggest win to date this week with the release of Mohsen Mahdawi, though both his case and the fight at large have a long way to go. While the ruling is not the kind of slam dunk that would make advocates feel safer about the state of free speech on college campuses, it is the first major breakthrough in the courts for international students who have been besieged by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) under President Trump. 'While this decision is a positive development, and we certainly hope there are more decisions like it coming down the road, I do think it would be overly ambitious to say that this provides a layer of protection' for students, said Conor Fitzpatrick, supervising senior attorney at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. Mahdawi, a green-card holder and 10-year U.S. resident, was released on bail Wednesday after he was arrested April 14 by plain clothes officers during what was supposed to be a naturalization interview, with video of the incident quickly going viral. The judge in the Columbia University student's case cited First Amendment concerns in his ruling. 'His continued detention would likely have a chilling effect on protected speech, which is squarely against the public interest. And continuing to detain him would not benefit the public in any way, as Mahdawi appears not to be either a flight risk or a danger to the community,' U.S. District Judge Geoffrey Crawford said. 'Finally, Mr. Mahdawi's release will benefit his community, which appears to deeply cherish and value him,' Crawford added. The release was the first among the high-profile cases that have garnered national attention in Trump's crackdown. The administration has accused Mahdawi and others of being 'pro-Hamas' and says the secretary of State has the authority to order their deportation because they pose a threat to the foreign policy of the United States. 'When you advocate for violence, glorify and support terrorists that relish the killing of Americans and harass Jews, that [visa] privilege should be revoked and you should not be in this country. We have the law, facts and commonsense on our side,' Tricia McLaughlin, assistant Homeland Security secretary, said on social platform X after Mahdawi's ruling. 'No judge, not this one or another, is going to stop the Trump Administration from restoring the rule of law to our immigration system,' McLaughlin added. Mahmoud Khalil, another Columbia alumnus and the first pro-Palestinian student activist known to be arrested by ICE, and Tufts University student Rumeysa Ozturk, who was allegedly targeted over a school newspaper op-ed she co-authored supporting Palestine, are both still fighting for their own release. Both were taken to Louisiana to be detained, leading to fights over which courts have jurisdiction over their cases. Advocates argue the administration taking students thousands of miles away from where they were arrested is intentional to harm them and get the proceedings into a friendlier court. Louisiana's district courts feed into the most conservative federal appeals court in the country. Mahdawi's 'case shows that once you get past all of the government's procedural tricks and hurdles … the government's defense' will not work in court, said Brian Hauss, senior staff attorney on the American Civil Liberties Union Speech, Privacy and Technology Project and part of Mahdawi's legal team. 'We expect that when the courts reach the merits in the other cases, they're going to see through [the federal government] as well. And so, we're hopeful that this is the first step in a very important constitutional right,' Hauss added. Fitzpatrick said the brighter light of hope 'that college students and other noncitizens should look for is whether an injunction has been issued, whether a court has issued an order blocking the Trump administration's efforts to deport noncitizens for protected speech.' Multiple academic groups have sued the administration over the policy the federal government is using to justify the arrests of international students and scholars. The Trump administration has not shown any signs of stopping, but advocates argue that even if all the cases were dropped today, the effects on free speech at college campuses will be long lasting. 'Over the last year, there's been a consistent and persistent squashing of speech, and that, unfortunately may continue and there is going to be a lingering fear,' said Kristen Shahverdian, program director of campus free speech at Pen America. 'There are already those repercussions where students and others on campus are reporting that they are afraid and that the risk is high, so they have to be really mindful of what they say, of voicing opinions, certainly not protesting visibly right out in the quad. And so, I think that, unfortunately, these kinds of cases can have a much longer term effect,' she added. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
The Hill
01-05-2025
- Politics
- The Hill
Palestinian student Mohsen Mahdawi's release offers hope amid Trump crackdown
Pro-Palestinian students detained by immigration authorities saw their biggest win to date this week with the release of Mohsen Mahdawi, though both his case and the fight at large have a long way to go. While the ruling is not the kind of slam dunk that would make advocates feel safer about the state of free speech on college campuses, it is the first major breakthrough in the courts for international students who have been besieged by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) under President Trump. 'While this decision is a positive development, and we certainly hope there are more decisions like it coming down the road, I do think it would be overly ambitious to say that this provides a layer of protection' for students, said Conor Fitzpatrick, supervising senior attorney at the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression. Mahdawi, a green card holder and 10-year U.S. resident, was released on bail Wednesday after he was arrested April 14 during what was supposed to naturalization interview by plain clothes officers, with video of the incident quickly went viral. The judge in the Columbia University student's case cited First Amendment concerns in his ruling. 'His continued detention would likely have a chilling effect on protected speech, which is squarely against the public interest. And continuing to detain him would not benefit the public in any way, as Mahdawi appears not to be either a flight risk or a danger to the community,' U.S. District Judge Geoffrey Crawford said. 'Finally, Mr. Mahdawi's release will benefit his community, which appears to deeply cherish and value him,' Crawford added. The release was the first among the high-profile cases that have garnered national attention in Trump's crackdown. The administration has accused Mahdawi and others of being 'pro-Hamas' and says the secretary of State has the authority to order their deportation because they pose a threat to the foreign policy of the United States. 'When you advocate for violence, glorify and support terrorists that relish the killing of Americans and harass Jews, that [visa] privilege should be revoked and you should not be in this country. We have the law, facts and commonsense on our side,' Tricia McLaughlin, assistant Homeland Security secretary, said on X after Mahdawi's ruling. 'No judge, not this one or another, is going to stop the Trump Administration from restoring the rule of law to our immigration system,' McLaughlin added. Mahmoud Khalil, also a Columbia alumnus and the first pro-Palestinian student activist known to be arrested by ICE, and Tufts University student Rumeysa Ozturk, who was allegedly targeted over a school newspaper op-ed she co-authored supporting Palestine, are both still fighting for their own release. Both were taken to Louisiana to be detained, leading to fights over which courts have jurisdiction over their cases. Advocates argue the administration taking students thousands of miles away from where they were arrested is intentional to harm them and get the proceedings into a friendlier court. Louisiana's district courts feed into the most conservative federal appeals court in the country. Mahdawi's 'case shows that once you get past all of the government's procedural tricks and hurdles […] the government's defense' will not work in court, said Brian Hauss, senior staff attorney on the Speech Privacy and Technology Project and part of Mahdawi's legal team. 'We expect that when the courts reach the merits in the other cases, they're going to see through [the federal government] as well. And so, we're hopeful that this is the first step in a very important constitutional right,' Hauss added. Fitzpatrick says the brighter light of hope 'that college students and other non-citizens should look for is whether an injunction has been issued, whether a court has issued an order blocking the Trump administration's efforts to deport non-citizens for protected speech.' Multiple academic groups have sued the administration over the policy the federal government is using to justify the arrests of international students and scholars. The Trump administration has not shown any signs of stopping, but advocates argue that even if all the cases were dropped today, the effects on free speech at college campuses will be long lasting. 'Over the last year, there's been a consistent and persistent squashing of speech, and that, unfortunately may continue and there is going to be a lingering fear,' said Kristen Shahverdian, program director of campus free speech at PEN America, 'There are already those repercussions where students and others on campus are reporting that they are afraid and that the risk is high, so they have to be really mindful of what they say, of voicing opinions, certainly not protesting visibly right out in the quad. And so, I think that, unfortunately, these kinds of cases can have a much longer term effect,' she added.
Yahoo
01-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Texas Gov. Abbott threatens to pull San Marcos funding over Israel ceasefire resolution
Gov. Greg Abbott has threatened to cut off state funding to the city of San Marcos after its leaders agreed to put an Israel-Hamas war ceasefire resolution to a vote next week. The San Marcos City Council voted April 15 to advance a ceasefire resolution, with a formal vote scheduled for its May 6 meeting. That resolution includes support for ending U.S. military funding of Israel with federal and local tax dollars. Abbott, in a letter sent to San Marcos Mayor Jane Hughson on Tuesday, said there would be consequences if the resolution passes. The letter states that no governmental entity in Texas 'may enter into a contract worth $100,000 or more unless it includes a 'written verification' that the contracting entity 'does not boycott Israel' and 'will not boycott Israel during the term of the contract.'' Abbott added that the city's proposed resolution 'seems calculated to violate this law by calling for San Marcos to limit its commercial relations with Israel.' The city's resolution states more than $4.4 million in San Marcos residents' tax dollars went to Israel. Abbott rebutted that statement, calling it 'hard to believe.' Abbott added that the resolution's call to reallocate those dollars away from Israel's military and toward essential domestic priorities are 'unacceptable' and a public expression of a desire to do what state law prohibits. Despite Abbott's claims, San Marcos' resolution states that it's seeking to curb antisemitism rather than promote it. The resolution ends with the City Council condemning any 'anti-Palestinian, Islamophobic, antisemitic, and all xenophobic rhetoric and attacks.' San Marcos officials declined to comment on Abbott's letter, saying they do not provide comment on items that are scheduled for consideration by the full City Council. They said the resolution is still expected to be considered at the May 6 council meeting. San Marcos leaders plan to 'hold a discussion regarding a possible resolution calling for the immediate and permanent ceasefire in occupied Palestine, an arms embargo on Israel, recognition of Palestinian sovereignty, and the protection of constitutional rights for all people under national and international law." Abbott categorized the resolution as 'pro-Hamas' and wrote that, by passing it, San Marcos would be violating state law and disrespecting a Texas ally. 'Israel is a stalwart ally of the United States and a friend to Texas,' Abbott wrote. 'I have repeatedly made clear that Texas will not tolerate antisemitism. Anti-Israel policies are anti-Texas policies.' House Bill 89, which prohibits government entities from conducting business with companies participating in, or planning to participate in, boycotts of Israel, became a Texas law in 2017. Those government entities include political subdivisions like the city of San Marcos, Abbott wrote. He added that when subdivisions enter into grant agreements with his office, they are required to comply with all state laws, including laws prohibiting government support for boycotts of Israel. Abbott wrote that his office is already reviewing its active grants with San Marcos to determine whether it has breached terms by falsely certifying compliance with state law. He added that if the city adopts the resolution, his office will not enter into any future grant agreements with the city and will immediately terminate its active grants. This article originally appeared on Austin American-Statesman: Abbott threatens San Marcos funding over Israel ceasefire resolution
Los Angeles Times
08-04-2025
- Politics
- Los Angeles Times
Trump revoked at least 83 student visas. Schools are confused and concerned
Good morning. Here's what you need to know to start your day. The Golden State's renowned universities attract students from all over the world. More than 140,000 international students were enrolled in California campuses last school year, according to data from the Institute of International Education. Some of those students now face an uncertain future after the Trump administration revoked dozens of international student visas beginning Friday, with no apparent warning. That left college leaders scrambling to determine how many of their students are impacted, The Times' Jaweed Kaleem reported Monday, noting that 'some tallies have fluctuated multiple times a day.' But the rough estimate based on our reporting so far is that at least 83 students and recent graduates in California have been affected. Most of them are still in the U.S., but their new status opens them up for deportation and other enforcement. That's what happened to one UC San Diego student, who was 'detained at the border, denied entry and deported to their home country,' Chancellor Pradeep Khosla wrote in a campus message. 'Federal immigration authorities generally only detain individuals when they are a public danger or flight risk but the Trump administration has at times taken more aggressive actions,' Jaweed noted. 'Schools have not reported federal immigration authorities on campuses.' Revocations have been reported on several campuses across the state, including UCLA, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UC Santa Cruz, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, and Stanford. 'The termination notices indicate that all terminations were due to violations of the terms of the individuals' visa programs,' UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk wrote in a campus message Sunday. Among the state's CSU campuses, the visas of 32 students had been revoked as of midday Monday, a spokesperson for the chancellor's office told me. The spokesperson declined to share details, citing privacy laws. Meanwhile, USC officials have thus far 'declined to state whether student visas were canceled at the campus, which is home to more than 17,000 international students, the largest concentration at any California school,' Jaweed noted. It's unclear why exactly the affected students were targeted for revocation. After headline-making detainments and deportations elsewhere in the U.S., federal officials alleged 'pro-Hamas' activities by foreign students who had protested Israel's war in Palestine. But campus members told Jaweed that there doesn't appear to be a connection to cases in California. A State Department spokesperson told The Times in a written statement that the U.S. 'has zero tolerance for non-citizens who violate U.S. laws,' but did not give specifics about visa cancellations in California. 'Those who break the law, including students, may face visa refusal, visa revocation, and/or deportation,' the spokesperson wrote. 'The Department of State will continue to work closely with the Department of Homeland Security to administer and enforce U.S. visas and immigration laws.' Some affected students are already fighting back. Two filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration in Los Angeles federal court over the weekend, arguing their revocations were illegal and claiming their only legal violations had been minor driving-related infractions. In their complaint, their lawyers argue the federal actions are 'designed to coerce students ... into abandoning their studies and 'self-deporting.'' You can read more about the revocations and campuses' responses in Jaweed's ongoing reporting. With hopes for asylum in the U.S. dashed, migrants in Tijuana ponder their next moves The Supreme Court pauses a wrongful deportation case at the behest of Trump lawyers Tesla shares drop amid auto tariffs and a 'brand crisis' What else is going on Get unlimited access to the Los Angeles Times. Subscribe here. He fought racism and fascism: A 108-year-old WWII paratrooper who paved path for Black soldiers dies. Sgt. Joe Harris lived a beautiful life, Times reporter Nathan Solis writes. He sailed to earth on numerous missions as a member of the U.S. Army's first all-Black paratrooper battalion during World War II, the 555th, aptly nicknamed the 'Triple Nickles.' At his funeral service Saturday, friends, families and uniformed members of the military danced and sang to honor Harris, believed to be oldest paratrooper veteran when he died March 15. How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to essentialcalifornia@ Going out Staying in Email us at essentialcalifornia@ and your response might appear in the newsletter this week. Show us your favorite place in California! Send us photos you have taken of spots in California that are special — natural or human-made — and tell us why they're important to you. Today's great photo is from Erika Brown of Berkeley: Año Nuevo State Park. Erika writes: 'Año Nuevo State Park is gorgeous. In early winter, it also becomes one of the rare locations where northern elephant seals come to breed, birth, and brawl.' Have a great day, from the Essential California team Ryan Fonseca, reporterAndrew Campa, Sunday reporterKevinisha Walker, multiplatform editorHunter Clauss, multiplatform editorChristian Orozco, assistant editorKarim Doumar, head of newsletters Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on
Yahoo
06-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Mahmoud Khalil speaks out on ‘abduction,' calls on students to take action
Mahmoud Khalil, a pro-Palestinian activist who was arrested in March by immigration authorities, spoke out about his 'abduction' in a Friday opinion piece. Khalil, a former lead negotiator for Columbia University's pro-Palestinian encampment, said in his Columbia Daily Spectator opinion piece that the school 'laid the groundwork for my abduction' and pushed for the school's students to 'not abdicate their responsibility to resist repression.' 'Since my abduction on March 8, the intimidation and kidnapping of international students who stand for Palestine has only accelerated,' Khalil wrote in the piece. The Trump administration has accused Khalil, who was recently detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), of being 'pro-Hamas' and taking part in 'pro-terrorist,' antisemitic activity, with the administration attempting to revoke the activist's green card over the allegations. Khalil's opinion piece came as the Trump administration has further cracked down on international students, seeking to detain and deport those who took part in pro-Palestinian demonstrations. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters last week that more than 300 student visas have been revoked. 'We do it every day,' he said. 'Every time I find one of these lunatics, I take away their visa.' 'If you apply for a visa to enter the United States and be a student, and you tell us that the reason you are coming to the United States is not just because you want to write op-eds but because you want to participate in movements that are involved in doing things like vandalizing universities, harassing students, taking over buildings, creating a ruckus, we are not going to give you a visa,' Rubio said. 'The logic used by the federal government to target myself and my peers is a direct extension of Columbia's repression playbook concerning Palestine,' Khalil said in his opinion piece. 'In the 18 months since the genocidal campaign in Gaza began, Columbia has not only refused to acknowledge the lives of Palestinians sacrificed for Zionist settler colonialism, but it has actively reproduced the language used to justify this killing.' Khalil later argued that Columbia's 'singular concern has always been the vitality of its financial profile, not the safety of Jewish students.' 'This is why Columbia was all too happy to embrace a superficial progressive agenda while still disregarding Palestine, and this is why it will soon turn on you, too,' he added, writing to Columbia students he labeled as 'apathetic to Columbia's disregard for human life and its willingness to discard student safety.' The Hill has reached out to Columbia, the White House, the New York City Police Department, the Department of Homeland Security and ICE for comment. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
