Overview

• Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University graduate student and lawful permanent resident, remains detained in Louisiana under a Cold War-era immigration law invoked by the Trump administration.
• On April 21, Khalil’s wife, Noor Abdalla, gave birth to their first child in New York without him present after ICE denied a two-week furlough request made by his legal team.
• ICE rejected the request in under an hour, despite offers for Khalil to wear an ankle monitor and comply with check-ins, prompting accusations of punitive intent from Abdalla and his attorneys.
• Khalil’s detention and pending deportation stem from his leadership in pro-Palestinian campus protests, with the administration citing alleged foreign policy risks, though no criminal charges have been filed.
• His legal team faces an April 23 deadline to appeal the deportation order, while a separate federal court case challenges the constitutionality of his detention and seeks his release.