Mahmoud Khalil’s apprehension and ensuing bid for deportation symbolizes a calculated venture by Trump to determine the extents of his reach, while assessing our determination to resist. As a key orchestrator of Columbia University’s demonstration against the devastating massacre in Gaza, Khalil, caught the media’s attention in late spring of 2024. On the night of March 8, the Ivy League alum and his wife were confronted by two unidentified men as they entered their residence. The men informed Khalil, a visa holder, of its sudden revocation and impending deportation.
They barged into the couple’s apartment, threatening to arrest Khalil’s spouse – an eight-month pregnant American citizen – if she raised objections. In an event of escalating tension, Khalil, a Palestinian, asked for a warrant. He was shown a document image on a phone, a manner devoid of the usual legal procedure.
Khalil, previously a decisive figure in rallying protests against Gaza’s atrocities in the Columbia University encampment the previous year, had formally played a part in addressing the university during the protest. Furthermore, he had successfully secured his green card recently. This information seemed to unsettle the intruders, identified as non-uniformed Department of Homeland Security personnel.
One of the DHS officers even made a phone call, ending the conversation by stating that Khalil’s newly-acquired green card had been revoked. By then, Khalil had already contacted his lawyer, who joined in demanding a proper warrant, consistent with the legal protocol. The officers concluded the conversation abruptly and proceeded to take Khalil away.
Khalil found himself in an ICE detention center in NYC, before being transferred to another undisclosed location. His wife and attorney faced a nerve-racking Sunday, unable to locate his whereabouts. He had essentially vanished. It was only the following day that they found out Khalil was constrained in a privately-run ICE detention center with known allegations of serious medical negligence and physical and sexual abuse.
The confinement of Khalil is exactly what it appears to be. Mahmoud Khalil is the inaugural individual the Trump regime has essentially vanished for ideological motives. The selection of the victim is not random but highly tactical. Standing for Khalil could invoke political repercussions that neither Columbia University nor the Democrats might be ready to face. Khalil might be the first political victim of the Trump administration, but undoubtedly not the last.
Now a universally acknowledged poem describing this sad reality echoes in our ears repeatedly. ICE has the authority to deport green card bearers under suspicions of partaking in and/or inciting terrorism, and the Trump administration has conveniently used this clause to justify Khalil’s confinement.
For those of us on the outside of these corridors of power, our options are severely limited. We have the ability to reach out to our elected officials to express our objection to Khalil’s detention and to pressure them to take proactive measures.
We can also urge the interim president of Columbia University, Katrina Armstrong, through emails, calling for the institution to condemn Khalil’s detention. As of now, these responsibilities have not been undertaken by those who hold institutional authority. Should this indifference persist, we are on the threshold of a collapse in the foundation of unassailable rights in the US.
With the Trump administration in its second term, the scenario screams chaos and ruthlessness. Barely a month into his return to the Presidency, and accompanied by Elon Musk, Trump has demonstrated that nothing is beyond the reach of unrestrained power and wealth.