Pro-Hamas Columbia protest leader arrested, green card revoked

Foreign national Mahmoud Khalil arrested by ICE after participating in march that “glorified”  October 7th, leading anti-Israel protests on Columbia campus.

By World Israel News Staff

A leader of pro-Hamas demonstrations at Columbia University was arrested on Saturday evening, with immigration officials saying that deportation proceedings have been initiated against him.

Mahmoud Khalil, who was a graduate student at Columbia until December 2024, was detained by Immigrations, Customs, and Enforcement (ICE) agents at his New York apartment over the weekend.

The Syrian-born student, who earned his undergraduate degree in Lebanon, was a leader in violent anti-Israel protests on campus that saw activists occupying buildings, disrupting classes, and harassing Jewish and Israeli students.

Khalil was said to be involved in an “unauthorized” march held shortly after the October 7th terror onslaught, which “glorified” the Hamas-led massacres, according to the New York Post.

He served as a “lead negotiator” between anti-Israel students committing illegal acts, including assaulting custodial workers during their takeovers of campus buildings and the Columbia administration.

Amy Greer, Khalil’s attorney, told the Associated Press that she had spoked to ICE officials during his arrest, who said his student visa was being revoked.

Greer said she informed ICE that Khalil now holds permanent residency (a green card), due to his marriage to an American citizen.

An ICE agent allegedly responded that that his residency would be revoked instead.

The Trump administration “will be revoking the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a message posted to his official X account on Sunday evening.

In January, President Donald Trump signed an executive order stating that foreign nations involved in “pro-jihadist protests” and “all Hamas sympathizers on college campuses” would be deported.

Last week, The Trump administration announced it was revoking $400 million in federal funding to Columbia due to its failure to curb antisemitism on its campus.