Donald Trump‘s administration has cracked down on immigration since the president took office in January. Reports of deportations have risen, and among them was Palestinian Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi. Mahdawi was being held at an Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) facility in Vermont since April 14, 2025. But with a judge’s recent order for his release from federal custody, Mahdawi’s case has become a national headline.
In response to the judge’s order for Mahdawi to be released, Department of Homeland Security Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin issued a statement, which read, “It is a privilege to be granted a visa or green card to live and study in the United States of America. When you advocate for violence, glorify and support terrorists that relish the killing of Americans, and harass Jews, that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country.”
McLaughlin was seemingly referring to Mahdawi’s association with a Pro-Palestinian student group at Columbia and for speaking out against Israel’s actions in Gaza.
Upon being released on bail on April 30, 2025, two weeks after his detainment, Mahdawi had a message for the Trump administration: “I am saying it clear and loud to President Trump and his Cabinet: I am not afraid of you,” he said.
Below, learn more about Mahdawi.
The 34-year-old was born in a refugee camp in the Israeli-occupied West Bank. In 2014, he moved to the United States.
After moving to the U.S., Mahdawi became a legal resident for 10 years and lived in Hartford, Vermont.
According to multiple outlets, Mahdawi co-founded the Palestinian Student Union at Columbia with another permanent Palestinian U.S. resident named Mahmoud Khalil, who was also reportedly detained.
Mahdawi is expected to graduate from Columbia in May 2025 before he begins a master’s degree program at the university, according to NBC5.
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