Court to rule whether activist Khalil will stay free
Government argues to overturn decision
By: Hanna Adely
NorthJersey.com
USA Today Network - New Jersey
..... Four months after New Jersey federal court ordered pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil released on bail - finding that his detention and attempts to deport home were likely unconstitutional - U.S. lawyers turned to a federal appeals court to overturn the decision.
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Government lawyers argued before the Third Circuit Court of Appeals on October 21 [2025] that Khalil's case should have been heard in mitigation court in Louisiana, where he was held in custody after he was briefly detained in New Jersey - and where the court is more conservative.
..... The appeal represents the latest government attempt to re-detain Khalil, who was a lead negotiator for pro-Palestine protesters at Columbia University. his arrest in March [2025] was part of a wider crackdown by the Trump administration, which arrested and sought to deport students and scholars over pro-Palestinian speech or activism.
..... The United States is relying on a rarely used law allowing removal of non-citizens if the secretary of State determines their presence threatens foreign policy interests.
..... Attorneys also accused Khalil of committing fraud on his green card application - allegation he and his attorneys say are "baseless."
..... U.S. district judge Michael Farbiarz ordered Khalil's release in June, [2025] after ruling that the government's attempts to detain and deport him on foreign policy grounds were unconstitutional and retaliatory. Farblarz, based in Newark, [NJ] cited evidence showing Khalil was not a flight risk or danger, which the U.S. government did not contest.
..... At the Third Circuit Court in Philadelphia, U.S. lawyers argued that constitutional claims should go through the mitigation system.
..... "All of this is being conducted in an improper forum," said drew Ensign, an attorney for the government, adding that "it should be a full stop."
..... Khalil's team argued that the petition challenging his detention, involving retaliation for protected speech, wanted immediate review by the courts. they field the case in New Jersey, they said, because government records indicated he was being held there at the time.
..... They asked the appeals court to uphold the ruling that ordered his release on bail and barred the government from detaining or deporting him based on "foreign policy interests."
..... The appeal was heard by a three-judge panel of Thomas Hardiman, Stephanos Biba and Arianna Freeman.
A deportation order
..... Khalil's case is also playing out in immigration court in Louisiana. In September, [2025] Immigration judge Jamee Comans denied a waiver to halt his deportation and ordered Khalil to be deported to Algeria or Syria, where he was born. comas cited alleged green card discrepancies.
..... Khalil's legal team was not given a chance to contest those allegations or provide evidence which they argued was a violation of his due process rights.
..... since his release, Khalil has continued to be an outspoken activist for Palestinian rights, appearing widely in media interview and at rallies.
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The Columbia graduate was arrested March 8 [2025] in the lobby of his student apartment building in Manhattan. A Palestinian born in Syria, Khalil was a stunt negotiator and spokesman for protesters at Columbia in the spring of 2024, when protest against war in Gaza griped college campuses.
..... A legal permanent resident, Khalil is married to a U.S. citizen. his first child was born while he was in ICE custody.
..... "The Trump administration is still trying to bring me back to detention and block the federal court in New Jersey from reviewing my case, the same court that ordered my release and ruled that their actions against me were unlawful," Khalil said in a statement.
..... "Their intention couldn't be more clear: they want to make an example of me to intimidate those speaking out for Palestine across the country," he said. "I'm stating unequivocally: I will continue my legal fight in federal courts for my rights, and for everyone's right, to free speech."