A federal appeals court ruling on Thursday renewed the possibility that Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian American activist and former Columbia University graduate student who became a target for the Trump administration, could be deported.
The three-judge panel from the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Philadelphia ruled 2-1 that federal immigration law meant U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz in New Jersey lacked jurisdiction when he ordered Khalil freed from immigration detention last year.
Farbiarz found that Khalil’s detention based on foreign policy grounds was likely unconstitutional. But the Trump administration appealed that ruling, arguing the deportation decision should fall to an immigration judge, rather than a federal court.
The appeals panel found that federal law would require the case to fully move through the immigration courts first, before Khalil can challenge the decision.
“The scheme Congress enacted governing immigration proceedings provides Khalil a meaningful forum in which to raise his claims later on—in a petition for review of a final order of removal,” Republican-appointed U.S. Circuit Judges Thomas Hardiman and Stephanos Bibas wrote in the opinion.
U.S. Circuit Judge Arianna Freeman, a Biden appointee, argued in her dissent that the panel’s conclusion applied the wrong legal standard and improperly shut down Khalil’s ability to raise “now-or-never claims” in the district court — claims she believed should be handled at the district court level.
It wasn’t immediately clear when or whether Khalil would be detained again. His lawyers can ask for the full circuit court to consider the case, or they can take it directly to the U.S. Supreme Court.
Regardless, Thursday’s ruling is a major win for the Trump administration, which has pursued Khalil’s deportation aggressively.
Khalil, a legal permanent U.S. resident, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities in New York on March 8, 2025, at his Columbia University apartment. He had become a prominent activist in pro-Palestinian protests against the Israel-Hamas war. Following his arrest, Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin alleged Khalil “led activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.”
Khalil was detained for several months in Louisiana, causing him to miss the birth of his first child. His case drew national attention, with some critics arguing the government was targeting his political speech.
Ebony Davis is a breaking news reporter for MS NOW based in Washington, D.C. She previously worked at CNN as a campaign reporter covering elections and politics.