Government says it won't release Mahmoud Khalil despite judge's order

[mahatmakanejeeves]

Source: NBC News

U.S. NEWS
Government says it won't release Mahmoud Khalil despite judge's order

A judge ruled earlier this week that the foreign policy grounds for Khalil's detention are insufficient and likely unconstitutional.


Mahmoud Khalil at a pro-Palestinian protest on the Columbia University campus in New York in 2024. Ted Shaffrey / AP file

June 13, 2025, 2:26 PM EDT
By Kimmy Yam

The Trump administration does not plan on releasing pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil despite a federal judge's ruling this week that he cannot be deported or detained based on a determination from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that he is a threat to national security.

In a letter filed on Friday afternoon, officials from the Department of Justice argued that while Khalil can't be detained based on Rubio's determination, according to the judge's ruling, he can be detained for other reasons. The officials cited immigration-related statutes. … "The Court instead enjoined Respondents from detaining Khalil 'based on the Secretary of State's determination,'' DOJ officials said in the letter. "That injunction does not interfere with Respondents' authority to detain Khalil on other grounds."

To justify Khalil's removal, Rubio released a memo in April, citing an obscure provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952. It allows the secretary of state to deport noncitizens if the secretary determines their presence in the country would result in "potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States." Rubio wrote in the memo that allowing Khalil, who led protests against the war on Gaza, to stay in the U.S. would create a "hostile environment for Jewish students in the United States."

But the judge, Michael Farbiarz of the U.S. District Court for New Jersey, ruled on Wednesday that the foreign policy grounds for Khalil's detention are insufficient and likely unconstitutional. Farbiaz stayed the preliminary injunction until 9:30 a.m. Friday, giving the government time to appeal. And by Friday morning, Khalil's legal team filed a letter, requesting the court to order his release.

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Read more: https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/government-wont-release-mahmoud-khalil-rcna212889

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Hat tip, Joe.My.God.

https://www.joemygod.com/2025/06/trump-admin-defies-judge-on-releasing-activist/