US lawmakers demand immediate release of Palestinian activist

WASHINGTON

More than 10 US lawmakers on Tuesday demanded the immediate release of Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil.

"We are horrified by the recent illegal abduction of Mahmoud Khalil and indefinite detention of Mahmoud Khalil - a U.S. legal permanent resident - by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents, and we unequivocally demand his immediate release from DHS custody," said 13 lawmakers in the House of Representatives, including congresswoman Rashida Tlaib.

Sending a letter to DHS Secretary Kristi Noem, the lawmakers said Khalil's constitutional rights have been violated.

"He has been denied meaningful access to counsel and any visitation from his family. This is absolutely unacceptable - and illegal. Their access to him must be immediately restored," they said.

Khalil, a green card holder and a recent Columbia University graduate who helped lead a pro-Palestinian encampment last April was arrested at his university-owned residence in New York on Saturday night.

According to Khalil’s lawyer Amy Greer, he was “wrongfully arrested” by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents who claimed his student visa was revoked -- even though he is a legal permanent resident and not in the US on a student visa. He is married to a US citizen who is eight months pregnant.

President Donald Trump defended the move, calling it “the first arrest of many to come.”

Trump said Khalil, whom he described as a “foreign pro-Hamas student,” was detained by ICE under executive orders he signed.

The lawmakers said Khalid has not been charged or convicted of any crime.

"We must be extremely clear: this is an attempt to criminalize political protest and is a direct assault on the freedom of speech of everyone in this country. Khalil's arrest is an act of anti-Palestinian racism intended to silence the Palestine solidarity movement in this country," they added.

Stressing that universities across the country must protect their students from this "vile assault" on free thought and expression, they said the DHS must "immediately" refrain from any further "illegal" arrests targeting constitutionally protected speech and activity.