DHS has until Friday to release professional rabble-rouser and anti-Israel activist Mahmoud Khalil from custody. New Jersey federal Judge Michael Farbiarz granted a preliminary injunction blocking federal officials from deporting a Columbia University protester, ruling that the administration’s claim that Khalil’s presence threatened foreign policy lacked sufficient evidence, per court documents cited by the New York Post . Palestinian Khalil, 30, was born in Syria and holds a green card. He was arrested in March by ICE in his Manhattan apartment, which is reportedly funded by Columbia University, amid an effort to halt growing anti-Semitic protests and violence on university campuses nationwide. A judge has filed that Columbia terror sympathizer Mahmoud Khalil cannot be deported or detained. No Judge can dictate foreign policy. Khalil has been accused by the Trump administration of being tied to the terror group Hamas and was responsible for leading a Columbia campus riot last spring. “When you advocate for violence, glorify and support terrorists that relish the killing of Americans, and harass Jews, take over buildings and deface property, that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country,” DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a statement Wednesday following the ruling, according to the Post. The White House and DHS are prepared to fight the ruling. “While in the United States, Khalil has consistently engaged in conduct detrimental to American foreign policy interests, including ongoing support for Hamas and harassment of Jewish students on campus,” White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson said. “The law authorizes the Secretary of State to revoke green cards of individuals who pose a threat to American foreign-policy interests.” “The district court order, entered without jurisdiction, will not be the final word,” Jackson said. “We expect a higher court to vindicate us in this. We have the Constitution, the facts, and common sense on our side,” McLaughlin said.
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