Mahmoud Khalil’s wife Noor Abdalla accuses US government of trying to silence pro-Palestinian activism.
Mahmoud Khalil, the pro-Palestinian activist who has been detained in the United States pending his deportation, has missed the birth of his son after being refused temporary release to attend the birth, his wife has said.
Noor Abdalla said on Monday that she gave birth to the couple’s first child in New York without Khalil present after US Immigration and Customs Enforcement made the “purposeful decision” to make her family suffer.
“My son and I should not be navigating his first days on earth without Mahmoud,” Abdalla, a US citizen, said in a statement.
“ICE and the Trump administration have stolen these precious moments from our family in an attempt to silence Mahmoud’s support for Palestinian freedom.”
“I will continue to fight every day for Mahmoud to come home to us,” Abdalla added.
“I know when Mahmoud is freed, he will show our son how to be brave, thoughtful, and compassionate, just like his dad.”
ICE did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Khalil, a graduate student at Columbia University who played a prominent role in last year’s campus protests against Israel’s war in Gaza, was detained by immigration authorities on March 8 as part of US President Donald Trump’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian activism.
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The Trump administration is seeking to deport Khalil, who is being detained at an ICE facility in Louisiana, claiming that his advocacy has undermined US efforts to “combat anti-Semitism” and “protect Jewish students from harassment and violence”.
Khalil, who is a permanent US resident, has denied engaging in anti-Semitism.
An immigration judge in Louisiana earlier this month ruled that the Trump administration could proceed with deportation proceedings against Khalil, finding that the government had “established by clear and convincing evidence that he is removable”.
Khalil’s lawyers have said they will appeal the decision.