Rabat – The case of Palestinian Mahmoud Kahlil, a voice for Palestine that has been silenced and caused backlash around the world, has a new development.
In response to an immigration judge’s request for evidence to support the Palestinian activit’s deportation, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio submitted a two-page memo on Wednesday, April 9, asserting that Kahlil, who is a lawful permanent US resident, should be deported due to his “beliefs, statements, or associations.”
The Trump administration had previously justified its deportation order against Kahlil by citing an ambiguous section of the US Immigration and Nationality Act, which grants the Secretary of State broad authority to revoke a person’s immigration status for activities in the US that would have “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences.”
However, when pressed to provide substantial evidence to support these claims, the administration shifted its focus to Kahlil’s beliefs, thereby going beyond the suppression of free speech to infringing on the very freedom of thought.
“For cases where the basis for this determination is the alien’s past, current, or expected beliefs, statements, or associations that are otherwise lawful, the Secretary of State must personally determine that the alien’s presence or activities would compromise a compelling US foreign policy interest,” read Rubio’s memo.
Rubio stated that his decision was based on information provided by multiple immigration authorities, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), regarding Kahlil’s involvement in “antisemitic protests and disruptive activities, which foster a hostile environment for Jewish students in the United States.”
Rubio further justified the administration’s action by claiming that Kahlil’s presence in the US undermines “US policy to combat antisemitism both abroad and within the United States, as well as efforts to protect Jewish students from harassment and violence.”
While Rubio emphasized the unsubstantiated claims of “antisemitism” against Kahlil, the memo notably contains no allegations of criminal activity, as the Syrian-Palestinian activist has not committed any known crimes.
Earlier in March, Rubio stated that the State Department had revoked over 300 student visas, adding that the administration was actively identifying what he referred to as “lunatics.” “It might be more than 300 at this point. We do it every day. Every time I find one of these lunatics, I take away their visas,” he boasted at a news conference.
Kahlil, who participated in pro-Palestine protests and led negotiations for student encampments at Columbia University during his studies last year, was part of the peaceful demonstrations sparked by Israel’s widely documented genocide in Gaza, which has led to an estimated 50,000 deaths, with US support, since October 2023.
Khalil has been held at the detention center in the state of Louisiana since March 8, in what many described as an “abduction.”
Students, of all religions and ethnicities, across the US and around the world have joined protests and campus encampments calling for the boycott of Israel and divestment from businesses complicit in supporting Israel’s settler occupation, apartheid, and genocide.
The Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD), a student-led campaign, has advocated for divestment from companies accused of supporting Israeli apartheid, occupation, and genocide, including Airbnb, Caterpillar, and Google — each under scrutiny for their ties to Israeli Occupation Forces’ (IOF) actions and government policies.
