Latest news with #CenterForConstitutionalRights
Fox News
2 days ago
- Politics
- Fox News
DHS fires back after Mahmoud Khalil targets Trump admin for $20M over detention
Pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil is taking aim at the U.S. government, seeking $20 million after he was targeted for deportation and locked up by the Trump administration. "Mr. Khalil is seeking $20 million, which he would use to help others similarly targeted by the Trump administration and Columbia University," the Center for Constitutional Rights noted in a press release. "He would accept, in lieu of payment, an official apology and abandonment of the administration's unconstitutional policy." The release stated, "The claim is a precursor to a federal lawsuit against the Trump administration, which he will bring under the Federal Tort Claims Act, a 1946 federal statute that allows individuals to sue the U.S. government for damages for civil law violations." Khalil missed the birth of his first child while he was being detained earlier this year. The activist accuses Israel of perpetrating a genocide against Gaza. "This is the first step towards accountability. Nothing can restore the 104 days stolen from me. The trauma, the separation from my wife, the birth of my first child that I was forced to miss. But let's be clear, the same government that targeted me for speaking out is using taxpayer dollars to fund Israel's ongoing genocide in Gaza," Khalil said, according to the press release. Department of Homeland Security assistant secretary Tricia McLaughlin slammed Khalil in a statement. "Mahmoud Khalil's claim that DHS officials branded him as an antisemite and terrorized him and his family is absurd. It was Khalil who terrorized Jewish students on campus. He 'branded' himself as antisemite through his own hateful behavior and rhetoric," McLaughlin asserted. "It is a privilege to be granted a visa or green card to live and study in the United States of America. The Trump Administration acted well within its statutory and constitutional authority to detain Khalil, as it does with any alien who advocates for violence, glorifies and supports terrorists, harasses Jews, and damages property." A senior State Department official noted that "there is ongoing litigation with respect to this matter. However, our position is that the actions of the United States with respect to Mahmoud Khalil were correct and necessary and fully supported both by fact and by law. It is our duty to use all available lawful tools and measures to remove aliens who violate our laws or pose a threat to our fellow citizens and communities."
News24
3 days ago
- Politics
- News24
Pro-Palestinian leader Mahmoud Khalil sues Trump for ‘political retaliation and abuse of power'
Pro-Palestinian leader Mahmoud Khalil sued the Trump administration for $20 million. He was freed from federal detention on the order of a judge. His detention came amid Trump's campaign against top US universities. Mahmoud Khalil, one of the most prominent leaders of US pro-Palestinian campus protests, sued the Trump administration on Thursday for $20 million over his arrest and detention by immigration agents. Khalil, a legal permanent resident in the US who is married to a US citizen and has a US-born son, had been in custody following his arrest in March. The 30-year-old was freed from a federal immigration detention centre in Louisiana in June, hours after a judge ordered his release on bail. 'The administration carried out its illegal plan to arrest, detain, and deport Mr Khalil 'in a manner calculated to terrorise him and his family', the claim says,' according to the Center for Constitutional Rights which is backing Khalil. Khalil suffered 'severe emotional distress, economic hardship (and) damage to his reputation', the claim adds. The Columbia University graduate was a figurehead of student protests against US ally Israel's war in Gaza, and the Trump administration labelled him a national security threat. Khalil called the lawsuit a 'first step toward accountability'. 'Nothing can restore the 104 days stolen from me. The trauma, the separation from my wife, the birth of my first child that I was forced to miss,' he said in the statement. There must be accountability for political retaliation and abuse of power. Mahmoud Khalil Khalil has previously shared his 'horrendous' experience in detention, where he 'shared a dorm with over 70 men, absolutely no privacy, lights on all the time'. Assistant Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said 'the Trump Administration acted well within its statutory and constitutional authority to detain Khalil, as it does with any alien who advocates for violence, glorifies and supports terrorists, harasses Jews, and damages property.' US President Donald Trump's government has justified pushing for Khalil's deportation by saying his continued presence in the US could carry 'potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences'. Khalil's detention came amid Trump's campaign against top US universities in recent months, with the president facing off against Columbia, Harvard and other schools over foreign student enrolment while cutting federal grants and threatening to strip accreditation. Beyond his legal case, Khalil's team has expressed fear he could face threats out of detention.
Al Arabiya
3 days ago
- Politics
- Al Arabiya
Released pro-Palestinian protest leader sues Trump for $20 million
Mahmoud Khalil, one of the most prominent leaders of US pro-Palestinian campus protests, sued the Trump administration Thursday for $20 million over his arrest and detention by immigration agents. Khalil, a legal permanent resident in the United States who is married to a US citizen and has a US-born son, had been in custody following his arrest in March. The 30-year-old was freed from a federal immigration detention center in Louisiana last month, hours after a judge ordered his release on bail. 'The administration carried out its illegal plan to arrest, detain, and deport Mr. Khalil 'in a manner calculated to terrorize him and his family,' the claim says,' according to the Center for Constitutional Rights, which is backing Khalil. Khalil suffered 'severe emotional distress, economic hardship (and) damage to his reputation,' the claim adds. The Columbia University graduate was a figurehead of student protests against US ally Israel's war in Gaza, and the Trump administration labeled him a national security threat. Khalil called the lawsuit a 'first step toward accountability.' 'Nothing can restore the 104 days stolen from me. The trauma, the separation from my wife, the birth of my first child that I was forced to miss,' he said in the statement. 'There must be accountability for political retaliation and abuse of power.' Khalil has previously shared his 'horrendous' experience in detention, where he 'shared a dorm with over 70 men, absolutely no privacy, lights on all the time.' Assistant Department of Homeland Security Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said 'the Trump administration acted well within its statutory and constitutional authority to detain Khalil, as it does with any alien who advocates for violence, glorifies and supports terrorists, harasses Jews, and damages property.' President Donald Trump's government has justified pushing for Khalil's deportation by saying his continued presence in the United States could carry 'potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences.' Khalil's detention came amid Trump's campaign against top US universities in recent months, with the president facing off against Columbia, Harvard and other schools over foreign student enrollment while cutting federal grants and threatening to strip accreditation. Beyond his legal case, Khalil's team has expressed fear he could face threats out of detention.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Mahmoud Khalil seeks $20M from the Trump administration -- or an apology
Weeks after being released from immigration detention, Mahmoud Khalil, a key negotiator and spokesperson during Columbia University's pro-Palestinian campus protests, has filed an administrative complaint against the Trump administration seeking $20 million in damages. Khalil, who was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement for more than three months as the Trump administration pushed for his deportation, alleges false arrest and imprisonment, malicious prosecution, intentional infliction of emotional distress and other alleged wrongdoings. The complaint, a precursor to a federal lawsuit, was filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act. MORE: Trial challenging administration's deportation of pro-Palestinian scholars gets underway According to the Center for Constitutional Rights, the organization representing Khalil, the Columbia graduate would use the money to 'help others similarly targeted by the Trump administration and Columbia University.' In a press release, the organization said: 'He would accept, in lieu of payment, an official apology and abandonment of the administration's unconstitutional policy." Khalil, 30, helped lead and negotiate on behalf of the pro-Palestinian encampments that spread at Columbia during the spring of 2024, amid the Israel-Hamas war. Khalil, a green card holder married to a U.S. citizen, was detained by ICE agents in his New York apartment building in March -- the first high-profile pro-Palestinian activist to be detained by ICE during the administration of President Donald Trump, who had vowed to "crush" the campus protests, calling them hotbeds of antisemitism. MORE: Mahmoud Khalil vows to keep fighting for Palestinians after release from ICE custody Khalil was transferred to an ICE facility in Louisiana, while the Trump administration pressed in court for his deportation. The Trump administration said Khalil was detained for his purported support of Hamas -- a claim his legal team has rejected and for which the administration provided no evidence. In court proceedings earlier this year, Secretary of State Marco Rubio -- citing a rarely used provision of the law -- determined Khalil should be deported because his continued presence in the country would pose a risk to U.S. foreign policy. An immigration judge in Louisiana initially found Khalil deportable, but a federal judge in New Jersey later issued an order barring the Trump administration from deporting or continuing to detain Khalil on that basis. Khalil was released from custody on June 20, but the Trump administration is continuing to seek his deportation. MORE: Mahmoud Khalil, in 1st broadcast interview, says he'll continue to 'advocate for what's right' Khalil's complaint also accuses the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security and ICE of conducting a 'retaliatory arrest' against Khalil over his constitutionally protected speech. "Officials at the highest levels of the United States government publicly lashed out at Mr. Khalil on social media, falsely labeling him a terrorist sympathizer and an anti-semite — derogatory charges designed to destroy Mr. Khalil's reputation, put him in physical danger and cause extreme emotional distress,' the complaint stated. In a statement to ABC News, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said the Trump administration acted within its legal and constitutional authority to detain Khalil. "Mahmoud Khalil's claim that DHS officials branded him as an antisemite and terrorized him and his family is absurd," McLaughlin said in the statement. "It was Khalil who terrorized Jewish students on campus. He 'branded' himself as antisemite through his own hateful behavior and rhetoric. It is a privilege to be granted a visa or green card to live and study in the United States of America."
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Mahmoud Khalil seeks $20M from the Trump administration -- or an apology
Weeks after being released from immigration detention, Mahmoud Khalil, a key negotiator and spokesperson during Columbia University's pro-Palestinian campus protests, has filed an administrative complaint against the Trump administration seeking $20 million in damages. Khalil, who was detained by Immigration and Customs Enforcement for more than three months as the Trump administration pushed for his deportation, alleges false arrest and imprisonment, malicious prosecution, intentional infliction of emotional distress and other alleged wrongdoings. The complaint, a precursor to a federal lawsuit, was filed under the Federal Tort Claims Act. MORE: Trial challenging administration's deportation of pro-Palestinian scholars gets underway According to the Center for Constitutional Rights, the organization representing Khalil, the Columbia graduate would use the money to 'help others similarly targeted by the Trump administration and Columbia University.' In a press release, the organization said: 'He would accept, in lieu of payment, an official apology and abandonment of the administration's unconstitutional policy." Khalil, 30, helped lead and negotiate on behalf of the pro-Palestinian encampments that spread at Columbia during the spring of 2024, amid the Israel-Hamas war. Khalil, a green card holder married to a U.S. citizen, was detained by ICE agents in his New York apartment building in March -- the first high-profile pro-Palestinian activist to be detained by ICE during the administration of President Donald Trump, who had vowed to "crush" the campus protests, calling them hotbeds of antisemitism. MORE: Mahmoud Khalil vows to keep fighting for Palestinians after release from ICE custody Khalil was transferred to an ICE facility in Louisiana, while the Trump administration pressed in court for his deportation. The Trump administration said Khalil was detained for his purported support of Hamas -- a claim his legal team has rejected and for which the administration provided no evidence. In court proceedings earlier this year, Secretary of State Marco Rubio -- citing a rarely used provision of the law -- determined Khalil should be deported because his continued presence in the country would pose a risk to U.S. foreign policy. An immigration judge in Louisiana initially found Khalil deportable, but a federal judge in New Jersey later issued an order barring the Trump administration from deporting or continuing to detain Khalil on that basis. Khalil was released from custody on June 20, but the Trump administration is continuing to seek his deportation. MORE: Mahmoud Khalil, in 1st broadcast interview, says he'll continue to 'advocate for what's right' Khalil's complaint also accuses the State Department, the Department of Homeland Security and ICE of conducting a 'retaliatory arrest' against Khalil over his constitutionally protected speech. "Officials at the highest levels of the United States government publicly lashed out at Mr. Khalil on social media, falsely labeling him a terrorist sympathizer and an anti-semite — derogatory charges designed to destroy Mr. Khalil's reputation, put him in physical danger and cause extreme emotional distress,' the complaint stated. In a statement to ABC News, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said the Trump administration acted within its legal and constitutional authority to detain Khalil. "Mahmoud Khalil's claim that DHS officials branded him as an antisemite and terrorized him and his family is absurd," McLaughlin said in the statement. "It was Khalil who terrorized Jewish students on campus. He 'branded' himself as antisemite through his own hateful behavior and rhetoric. It is a privilege to be granted a visa or green card to live and study in the United States of America."
