Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi has finally been released from U.S. immigration custody after he was detained for expressing his support for Palestine. Mahdawi, a permanent U.S. resident, was detained in April when he went to his citizenship interview in Vermont, per the BBC.
While the US government argued that Mahdawi was undermining the country’s foreign policy, Mahdawi’s attorney Luna Droubi said her client’s arrest was “in direct retaliation for his advocacy on behalf of Palestinians and because of his identity as a Palestinian.”
Why was Mohsen Mahdawi released?
Mahdawi was released on Wednesday after Vermont District Judge Geoffrey Crawford allowed him to be freed on bail. Crawford said the student’s release is in the public interest. The judge added that Mahdawi doesn’t pose any risk to the community and he is not a flight risk.
Mahdawi is, however, is required to stay in Vermont and appear in all court hearings in person. He is also allowed to go to New York for “educational purposes” or to meet his attorneys, per Intelligencer. While the government attempted to delay Mahdawi’s release by seven days, the judge didn’t grant their request.
“Legal residents — not charged with crimes or misconduct — are being arrested and threatened with deportation for stating their views on the political issues of the day,” Crawford said, per Intelligencer. “Our nation has seen times like this before, especially during the Red Scare and Palmer Raids of 1919/1920 that led to the deportation of hundreds of people suspected of anarchist or communist views.”
How is Mohsen Mahdawi responding after being released?
Droubi said she feels relieved by Mahdawi’s release, but the fight for justice continues and the legal team will “keep fighting until Mohsen is free for good,” according to BBC. The attorney adds that the allegations against him are “baseless” and a “disgrace to the US Constitution.”
Mahdawi also spoke outside the courtroom, per the BBC, saying, “We are pro-peace and anti-war.”
“To my people in Palestine: I feel your pain, I see your suffering; and I see freedom and it is very very soon,” he said.
“To President Trump and his Cabinet: I am not afraid of you.”
— The Recount (@therecount) April 30, 2025
— Palestinian Columbia student Mohsen Mahdawi after being freed from ICE custody by a Vermont judge pic.twitter.com/XFexSoXwY9
Mahdawi stated that he will not be deterred from continuing to speak out in support of Palestine: “I’m saying it clear and loud. To President Trump and his cabinet: I am not afraid of you,” he said.
