Mahmoud Khalil’s Attorneys Ask For Activist’s Release As Court Case Continues

Attorneys for detained Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil have asked a judge to immediately release the green-card holder while his case makes its way through court — and to block the Trump administration from weaponizing immigration law in order to similarly arrest other pro-Palestinian residents who are not United States citizens.

The Columbia University graduate’s legal team filed a motion on Monday in the Southern District of New York requesting a preliminary injunction that would release him while the court reviews his habeas petition arguing his March 8 arrest was illegal. He is currently still being held at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention facility in Jena, Louisiana.

Federal plainclothes immigration agents arrested Khalil when he and his wife, Noor Abdalla, returned to their university-owned apartment at night after iftar, the breaking of their Ramadan fast. The agents did not have a judicial warrant, nor would they answer questions from Khalil’s wife and attorney about where they were taking him and on what grounds. The officers also threatened to arrest Abdalla, a U.S. citizen who recorded the interaction.

Khalil still has not been charged with a crime, though Secretary of State Marco Rubio said he plans to use a vague provision of the 1953 Immigration and Nationality Act that allows the federal government to detain people he personally believes are a threat to U.S. foreign policy. The administration has publicly accused Khalil of supporting Hamas, but not one official has been able to give evidence that would back such a claim.

Monday’s filing seeking a preliminary injunction also requests the court block the Trump administration’s newly admitted policy of using that vague provision to round up other pro-Palestinian people who are lawful residents but not U.S. citizens — calling the policy’s scope “breathtaking.”

“President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio could apply it to any pro-Palestine speech by any noncitizen. And the policy provides no notice as to what specific statements might subject noncitizens to this unprecedented determination,” the motion said. “Respondents’ actions have an immediate and palpable chilling effect on political debate on a topic of ongoing international concern.

“Unless this Court enjoins the government’s unlawful and retaliatory policy and determination, this harm – and the suppression of disfavored speech – will continue to grow for Mr. Khalil and others subject to the policy during the pendency of this action,” it continued.

Spokespersons for the Southern District of New York, the Department of Homeland Security and the White House did not immediately respond to HuffPost’s requests for comment. The State Department said it does not comment on pending or ongoing litigation.

In addition to the preliminary injunction, Khalil’s lawyers also filed two briefs related to whether the detained activist should be transferred back to New York from Louisiana, where Abdalla, who is pregnant, is unable to visit because her due date is just weeks away.

“Forcing Mahmoud Khalil – a legal permanent resident who has not been accused of committing a single crime – to remain in detention during the birth of his child is unconscionable. Protesting a war or criticizing foreign policy is neither illegal, nor grounds for detention,” said Donna Lieberman, executive director for the New York Civil Liberties Union, which is part of Khalil’s legal team.

“The Trump administration has no right to incarcerate Mr. Khalil – this is an extreme, retaliatory and targeted attack on the First Amendment and his right to due process,” she continued. “We ask the Court to recognize the urgency of this moment, and let Mr. Khalil go home to his expectant wife in New York.”

Khalil’s lawyers filed an emergency bail motion on Saturday that included letters of support from his college community and friends, who describe the activist as kind, diplomatic and values-driven. That motion also included medical letters related to the impact Khalil’s detention has on Abdalla’s pregnancy, which is 33 weeks along.

“I am alarmed that Ms. Abdalla, who was already determined to be at an increased risk for preeclampsia and prescribed medication for this earlier in her pregnancy, now faces an even greater likelihood of a poor birth outcome due to the stress of the incarceration of her husband,” a doctor with obstetrics expertise said in their medical assessment filed by Khalil’s lawyers.

“Mitigating severe stress is urgent and important for the health of the pregnant woman and her child,” the doctor continued. “Paternal involvement in pregnancy and labor has been shown to do just that – significantly improve maternal well-being and reduce rates of preterm birth, low birth weight, and even infant mortality.”