Mahmoud Khalil, a former student at Columbia University, has pledged to continue protesting Israel’s support for Israeli military operations and the US’s war against Gaza.
Khalil, who was released on Friday night after being held in a detention facility for more than three months, claimed Columbia University was funding “this]Gaza genocide” and that the government was funding it.
“I will continue to protest with each of you because of this. Not just if they threaten to detain me. I would still speak up for Palestine, he said, even if they killed me.
You are not illegal in this country, whether you are a citizen, an immigrant, or any other person. You don’t become less human as a result.
Khalil, 30, was born in Syria and has Palestinian parents. He was detained by immigration officials in March at his university, where he quickly rose to prominence as a symbol of President Donald Trump’s harsh crackdown on pro-Palestine student protesters and their possible deportation in the name of alleged anti-Semitism.
Khalil, a legal US citizen, was detained and deported because of errors in his application for permanent residency, according to the government.
However, District Judge Michael Farbiarz claimed it was “highly, highly unusual” for the government to keep a legal US resident incarcerated despite the fact that they were unlikely to flee and have not been accused of any violent behavior.
Khalil is subject to restrictions on where he can travel in the US and is prohibited from leaving the country under the terms of his release.
Source: Aljazeera
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