A U.S. judge has ordered the release of Columbia University student and pro-Palestinian protester Mohsen Mahdawi to challenge his deportation case.
On Wednesday, in Burlington, Vermont, U.S. District Judge Geoffrey Crawford ruled that Mahdawi could leave the Northwest State Correctional Institution, where he has been in jail since immigration officials arrested him earlier this month.
Mahdawi walked out of the court in the air with her hands, flashing signs of peace as supporters cheered.
While he spoke, he shared a message with President Donald Trump, who led to a crackdown on student protesters who condemned Israel’s war in Gaza.
"I'm not afraid of you," Mahadavi told Trump. He also addressed the Palestinian people and tried to dispel the perception that the student protest movement was by no means peaceful.
“We are for peace, anti-war,” Mahdawi explained. "To my Palestinian people: I feel your pain, I see your pain, I see freedom, and soon it will."
Mahdawi, a legal resident of the United States and a former leader of the Columbia University protests, was detained during an April 14 interview. The video of him being taken away was taken away and spread widely on social media.
His arrest was part of a wider push for the Trump administration’s publicity for visa holders and permanent residents. Trump has also put pressure on top universities in the name of fighting anti-Semitism to combat pro-Palestinian protests.
However, critics say the rationale is an excuse to have more control over academia and to stifle opposing views.
Mohsen Mahdawi has just been released on bail by a federal judge in Vermont. pic.twitter.com/sgtnyfeymu
— Katherine Franke (@profkfranke) April 30, 2025
Although the immigration case against Mahdawi will continue, Judge Crawford ruled that the student activist did not take risks and could free himself to attend his graduation in New York City next month.
The U.S. government may appeal Mahadaway's release, but the judge's ruling allowed him to leave Vermont with him deported from outside the detention center.
However, the Trump administration opposed his release. Its lawyers believe that Mahadawi's detention is a "constitutional effective aspect of the deportation process."
Mahdawi's lawyers countered that his detention center had trampled on his constitutional right to free speech.
“Moson did not commit any crime, and the only reason the government is considered to have put him in jail is the content of his speech,” said Lia Ernst, attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union representing Mahadawi, in a statement after his release.
The Trump administration has taken a broad stance that constitutional rhetoric only applies to U.S. citizens, and this issue can ultimately be decided by the U.S. Supreme Court.
In court documents, government lawyers used the Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 as the legal basis for seeking Mahdawi's deportation.
A portion of the law rarely used allows the U.S. to deport foreign nationals “in the United States”, giving the Secretary of State “reason to believe that (they) could have serious adverse foreign policy consequences.”
Secretary of State Marco Rubio used the provision as the basis for seeking to expel Mahdawi and other pro-Palestinian student protesters. Israel is a key ally of the United States in the Middle East.
Mahdawi was arrested a few weeks after Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil, who is also a permanent resident of the United States.
In early March, Khalil was also detained by immigration officials. The two co-founded the Palestinian Student Union of the famous Ivy League University.
Since his arrest outside his apartment, Harrier has remained in custody of immigration in Louisiana. Earlier this month, an immigration judge ruled that Khalil was indeed deported and resided with a government lawyer.
Rubio wrote in a two-page letter to the court that the 30-year-old should be evacuated from the United States because of his role in "anti-Semitic protests and destructive activities that promote a hostile environment for Jewish students in the United States."
The Trump administration has widely portrayed nearly all forms of pro-Palestinian advocacy as “anti-Semitism,” as what critics call an effort to make free speech.
Rubio provided no further evidence to support his claims against Khalil, and the student leaders did not commit crimes. Nevertheless, Rubio's letter still says that even if their beliefs, associations or statements are "otherwise," his department can revoke the legal status of permanent residents.
A federal judge ruled Tuesday that Harrier could target his political views and pose a legal challenge to his arrest and detention.
Both Mahdawi and Khalil both have parallel court cases, one seeking probation for deportation and the other challenging its arrest basis.
During his detention, Mahadawi was visited by U.S. Senator Peter Welch, who condemned the student for being arrested as “unjust” and anti-democratic.
According to a video posted on Welch’s X account, Mahdawi said at the time: “I want to rest assured about my ability to be just and my deep belief in democracy and keep a positive attitude.”
“That’s why I want to be a citizen of this country because I believe in the principles of this country.”