Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil asks US Supreme Court to hear case seeking to avoid re-arrest

Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil asked the US Supreme Court on Monday to hear his case to avoid re-arrest and deportation. The 3rd Circuit ruled that federal immigration law barred a judge from ordering his release. Khalil was arrested in March 2025 under the Trump administration's campaign against pro-Palestinian activism on college campuses.

Columbia University graduate Mahmoud Khalil on Monday asked the US Supreme Court to overturn a ruling that opened the door for the Trump administration to re-arrest and deport the Palestinian activist. Khalil's lawyers asked the justices to take up his case after the Philadelphia-based 3rd US Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that federal immigration law barred a lower-court judge from ordering his release from ICE custody. Khalil was among the most prominent foreign students arrested last year as the Trump administration pursued a campaign to detain and deport noncitizens who engaged in pro-Palestinian activism on college campuses. His lawyers say the Supreme Court should make clear that immigration law does not prevent noncitizens from pursuing cases arguing they have been detained to punish them for speech protected by the First Amendment. Khalil faces possible re-arrest and deportation pending the Supreme Court ruling. A lower court order barring him from being re-detained remains in place for now. A DHS spokesperson said the administration acted within its authority and encouraged him to self-deport. Khalil is an Algerian citizen born in a Palestinian refugee camp in Syria. He was arrested in March 2025 despite being a lawful permanent resident. Secretary of State Marco Rubio invoked an obscure provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act to deem him removable, citing his involvement in antisemitic protests at Columbia. He was released in June 2025 after a district judge ordered his release, but the 3rd Circuit overturned that decision in January.