An immigration appeals board issued a final order of removal for Mahmoud Khalil on Thursday, moving the Trump administration closer to deporting the green card holder whose case has become a flashpoint in debates over speech and immigration enforcement.
Khalil, a lawful permanent resident from Syria of Palestinian descent, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement in March 2025 after helping lead anti-Israel protests at Columbia University. The Department of Homeland Security has said his activities were aligned with Hamas, a designation that triggered proceedings under immigration law.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said Khalil's presence or activities would compromise a compelling U.S. foreign policy interest and pledged to strip the immigration status of foreigners deemed to be Hamas supporters.
What the Right Is Saying
The Trump administration has defended its actions as necessary for national security and foreign policy interests. Secretary Rubio said the administration would revoke visas and green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported.
Former ICE Deputy Field Office Director Scott Mechkowski weighed in on social media, calling Khalil's case an example of how the immigration system is broken. 'This guy should have been removed years ago, but attorneys just keep trying to game the system,' Mechkowski wrote. 'Time to deport him already!'
Conservative commentators have argued that Khalil's protest activities at Columbia constituted support for a terrorist organization and that green card holders who engage in such activities should face deportation regardless of their legal status.
The administration has framed its enforcement as applying immigration law consistently to noncitizens whose activities threaten U.S. foreign policy interests.
What the Left Is Saying
Khalil has denied any connection to Hamas and called the immigration board's decision biased and politically motivated. In a statement, he said: 'I have committed no crime. I have broken no law. The only thing I am guilty of is speaking out against the genocide in Palestine — and this administration has weaponized the immigration system to punish me for it.'
His attorneys said he is still pursuing a separate case in federal court and cannot yet be detained or deported. Khalil's lead attorney, Marc Van Der Hout, accused the Trump administration of exerting undue influence over immigration courts.
In all my decades as an immigration lawyer, I have never seen such a baseless and politically motivated decision,' Van der Hout said. 'The BIA's decision has absolutely no support in the record, violates a federal court order, and we'll be fighting it until the end.'
Van der Hout noted that federal courts have already agreed Khalil was targeted for his speech. 'This is a clear continuation of the administration's retaliation against Mahmoud for exercising his First Amendment rights,' he added.
Progressive advocacy groups have argued that Khalil's prosecution sets a dangerous precedent for suppressing political speech, particularly criticism of Israeli government policies.
What the Numbers Show
The Board of Immigration Appeals issued its final order of removal Thursday, according to Khalil's legal team. This marks the latest development in proceedings that began with his arrest in March 2025.
A federal judge in New Jersey ordered Khalil's release from ICE detention in June, before Thursday's removal order was issued. He remains in the United States while his federal court case proceeds.
The DHS statement cited Khalil's activities as aligned with Hamas, a designated foreign terrorist organization. Secretary Rubio invoked compelling U.S. foreign policy interest as the basis for the administration's position.
The Bottom Line
The immigration appeals board's final order of removal brings Khalil closer to potential deportation, though his attorneys say he cannot yet be detained because separate federal court litigation remains ongoing.
The case is being closely watched as a test of the administration's authority to remove green card holders based on political speech and alleged ties to designated terrorist organizations. Khalil's attorneys have vowed to continue fighting the removal order through federal court.
What happens next will likely depend on the outcome of the separate federal court case, where Khalil's lawyers argue his First Amendment rights were violated and that he was targeted for his speech rather than any criminal conduct.