Washington, DC [US], March 11 : US President Donald Trump has welcomed the arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University student who led the pro-Palestinian protests on the campus, and strongly asserted that it is the "first arrest of many to come."
Trump stated on Monday (local time) that his administration would apprehend and deport the "terrorist sympathizers" from the US "never to return again."
He noted that there are more students at Columbia and other Universities across the country who have engaged in pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activity and vowed to not "tolerate it."
https://x.com/whitehouse/status/1899183816234697114
"Following my previously signed Executive Orders, ICE proudly apprehended and detained Mahmoud Khalil, a Radical Foreign Pro-Hamas Student on the campus of Columbia University. This is the first arrest of many to come. We know there are more students at Columbia and other Universities across the Country who have engaged in pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activity, and the Trump Administration will not tolerate it," Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
"Many are not students, they are paid agitators. We will find, apprehend, and deport these terrorist sympathizers from our country never to return again. If you support terrorism, including the slaughtering of innocent men, women, and children, your presence is contrary to our national and foreign policy interests, and you are not welcome here. We expect every one of America's Colleges and Universities to comply. Thank you," he added.
Khalil was arrested by the federal immigration authorities who said they were acting on a State Department order to revoke his green card, according to his attorney.
In the latest development, a federal judge in New York has blocked any efforts by President Donald Trump's administration to deport Khalil, until a conference Wednesday, according to court documents, CNN reported.
"To preserve the Court's jurisdiction pending a ruling on the petition, Petitioner shall not be removed from the United States unless and until the Court orders otherwise," the Monday filing said.
The arrest of Khalil during the weekend demonstrated a significant escalation of the Trump administration's crackdown on dissent at college campuses in the US, according to The Hill.
During his campaign, Trump had vowed to target those who participated in anti-Israel protests on college campuses, which at times featured antisemitic rhetoric and drew widespread condemnation.
Earlier in January, the US President signed an executive order seeking to fight antisemitism on college campuses and pledging action against "Hamas sympathizers" among students. In the order, Trump directed federal resources toward fighting antisemitism on campuses and demanded all federal executive agencies to report criminal and civil actions that can be used to fight antisemitism.
Notably, 'antisemitic' incidents on US college campuses witnessed a rise following Hamas's attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, which claimed the lives of 1,100 Israelis. In response, Israel has launched an offensive against Hamas in Gaza that has killed more than 40,000 Palestinians and reduced much of Gaza to rubble. The war triggered protests at the campuses in the US last spring, with more than 2,000 arrests at universities across the country.
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