Pro-Palestine activist Mahmoud Khalil, whom the authorities attempted to deport from the United States after he led a 2024 encampment protest against Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza, is suing Columbia University and a dean for “institutional racism” against Palestinian students.
asserted
he → attempt → students
Late last month, a federal judge ruled against his deportation, finding that the Trump administration had violated the constitutional rights of international students when it sought to punish them, including Khalil, for criticising Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.
asserted
it → rule → Gaza
Recommended Stories
list of 3 items- list 1 of 3Mahmoud Khalil alleges conspiracy in lawsuit against Trump officials
- list 2 of 3US judge rules against Trump’s effort to deport pro-Palestinian students
- list 3 of 3‘Columbia did not care’: Mahmoud Khalil files discrimination lawsuit
The lawsuit is being brought in collaboration with the Palestine Working Group (PWG), a student organisation at the university advocating for Palestinian rights, whose activities were indefinitely suspended by the management.
“We are suing because no student, regardless of their background, should go through the hell that Columbia put us through over all these years,” Khalil said when announcing the lawsuit against both Columbia University and Keren Yarhi-Milo, dean of the School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA).
asserted
Khalil → allege → Affairs
Khalil also claims that “Columbia laid the groundwork for my targeting by the Trump administration through its deliberate indifference and discrimination aimed at intimidating Palestinian students”.
uncertain
Columbia → claim → students
The university has not yet responded to the lawsuit.
asserted
university → respond → lawsuit
Here’s what we know so far.
asserted
we → ’ → what
A series of student protests and encampments swept the US – and later, other countries – in 2024, after starting at Columbia.
asserted
series → sweep → Columbia
Protesters called for an end to the genocide and for their universities to divest from investments in companies linked to the Israeli military.
asserted
universities → call → military
Thousands of students across the US were arrested.
asserted
Thousands → arrest → US
Khalil’s activism led to his arrest.
asserted
activism → lead → arrest
The video of his arrest was widely shared online in March 2025, showing him being taken from his home, handcuffed and arrested for activities that were “aligned with Hamas”, the Palestinian group that ran the Gaza Strip, the authorities said.
asserted
authorities → share → Strip
The video was recorded by his wife, a US citizen, who was eight months’ pregnant at the time.
asserted
who → record → time
Despite being a green card holder, which made Khalil a legal resident of the US, he was arrested by plainclothes officers of the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
asserted
he → make → Immigration
He was eventually released in June 2025 after 104 days in detention, but missed the birth of his child.
asserted
He → release → child
Why has this lawsuit been filed?
asserted
lawsuit → file → ?
Khalil and the PWG are asking for their suspension by the university to be lifted, for damages to be paid “in amounts to be determined at trial”, for the university to be prevented from taking future discriminatory actions, and to allow Khalil access to the campus again.
asserted
university → ask → campus
The complaint against Columbia University, its trustees and SIPA dean Yarhi-Milo also references the “deliberate indifference” and “severe, persistent, and coordinated harassment” of Khalil and PWG members.
asserted
complaint → reference → Khalil
The complaint states this was “due to their pro-Palestine advocacy and affiliation, their perceived shared ancestry as Arab and/or Muslim students”.
asserted
this → state → students
The complaint states that harassment of the PWG began from its formation in 2018, but claims that “harassment and hostility” after October 7, “escalated to an extreme level”, and allegedly included “doxxing” and threats against those affiliated with the group.
uncertain
harassment → state → group
“Doxxing” is the revealing of personal, identifying information about targets, such as their address and contact details.
asserted
Doxxing → identify → address
Announcing the lawsuit, Khalil said: “Columbia laid the groundwork for my targeting by the Trump administration through its deliberate indifference and discrimination aimed at intimidating Palestinian students.
asserted
Columbia → announce → students
“Hateful individuals at Columbia who were also responsible for what we endured.
asserted
we → endure → what
The consequences of these accusations, according to the complaint, are that Khalil and other PWG members sustained emotional, psychological, professional and reputational damages.
uncertain
Khalil → accord → damages
What happened during the campus protests?
asserted
What → happen → protests
Encampments by protesters on the Columbia University campus began in April 2024.
asserted
Encampments → begin → April
Following a large number of arrests and the removal of the encampment, it was rebuilt.
asserted
it → follow → encampment
Khalil, then a full-time student at SIPA, emerged as a lead negotiator between the students and the university about divestment, something the university declined to do.
asserted
university → emerge → divestment
On April 30, student protesters occupied Hamilton Hall on the university’s campus and renamed it “Hind’s Hall” – after Hind Rajab, a five-year-old Palestinian girl shot dead in a car in Gaza by the Israeli military.
asserted
protesters → occupy → military
Khalil was not part of the building occupation but was involved as a mediator between the university and protesters.
asserted
Khalil → involve → university
In 2025, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced the revocation of visas for hundreds of students, including legal permanent residents, over their Palestine activism.
asserted
Rubio → announce → activism
In the wake of the student protests, the Trump administration withheld hundreds of millions of dollars in federal funding from several universities it deemed had failed to act effectively against anti-Semitism on their campuses.
asserted
it → withhold → campuses
Columbia University paid $221m to settle claims in July 2025 and to have its $400m funding restored.
uncertain
funding → pay → July
How has the university responded to the lawsuit?
Columbia University has not made a formal response to the lawsuit.
asserted
University → respond → lawsuit
It has, however, released a general statement, saying it takes campus safety seriously and that “Columbia is committed to protecting our community from discrimination and harassment, and responding promptly and appropriately when concerns arise”.
asserted
concerns → release → discrimination
What is happening now?
asserted
What → happen → ?
Following his release in June 2025 after 104 days in detention, Khalil’s legal team appealed the deportation order.
asserted
team → follow → order
In September 2025, a federal judge ruled that the Trump administration had unlawfully targeted pro-Palestine activists with deportation to silence criticism of Israel, violating their right to free speech.
asserted
administration → rule → speech
In January this year, the Trump administration scored a win when an appeals court panel dismissed Khalil’s petition.
asserted
panel → score → petition
In a two-to-one ruling, the judges concluded that the federal court that ordered Khalil’s release last year lacked jurisdiction over the matter.
asserted
that → conclude → matter
Khalil said he would appeal again.
asserted
he → say → ?
…and 3 more, not listed.
The Aporia
