Trump lawyers try to shift detained Palestinian activist's case to Louisiana

by Gregory WALTON, with Ana FERNANDEZ in New York

US government lawyers pushed Friday for the case of a pro-Palestinian protest leader slated for deportation to be moved to a Louisiana court thought to be sympathetic to President Donald Trump's hardline immigration crackdown.

Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil -- a prominent face of the protest movement that erupted in response to Israel's war in Gaza -- was arrested and taken to Louisiana earlier this month, sparking protests.

Several other foreign student protesters have been similarly targeted.

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The government has not accused Khalil of any crime, but instead ordered his deportation and canceling his green card resident's permit on the grounds of undermining US foreign policy.

At a hearing in New Jersey, government lawyer August Flentje said that "for jurisdictional certainty, the case belongs in Louisiana."

But Khalil's lawyer Baher Azmy accused the government of seeking to move the case to bolster its "retaliation."

The judge said he would not rule immediately on shifting the case to the Western District of Louisiana, a more conservative bench that has previously leaned towards Trump's policies.

Khalil was not present at the hearing, but his wife Noor attended with several supporters.

- 'Witch hunt'? -

Khalil's arrest has triggered outrage from Trump opponents, free speech advocates and some on the political right, who say the case will have a chilling effect on freedom of expression.

Immigration officers have similarly detained and sought to deport a Tufts University student from Turkey, Rumeysa Ozturk, and Columbia student Yunseo Chung. Their deportations have been blocked for now by courts.

Ozturk's lawyer said Thursday that "we should all be horrified at the way (officers) abducted Rumeysa in broad daylight" after footage of masked, plainclothes officers surrounding the veiled student circulated online.

Students at Columbia have described a culture of fear in the wake of the action against the college and its students.

"Nothing can protect you," said one student, a Hispanic-American with US citizenship who participated in last year's protests calling for a Gaza ceasefire and for Columbia to divest from Israel.

"I take precautions, I check if someone is following me. Before, I wasn't afraid to leave my apartment door unlocked; now I lock it in case an agent comes in to check my stuff."

Nadia Urbinati, a professor of Political Theory at Columbia, told AFP that "writing papers, teaching, having new research, researchers or fellows becomes more restricted, controlled and monitored."

A foreign student, who declined to be named for fear of retaliation, said Trump had sought to "isolate" activists.

"We try to laugh," said another, but "the feeling of fear and paranoia is widespread."

Dozens protested in support of Khalil outside the New Jersey courthouse, holding Palestinian flags and banners.

"We are going to fight this witch hunt," said one protester, who did not want to be identified.

As well as targeting foreign students at Columbia University, the Trump administration has sought to slash $400 million of federal funding and grants over alleged anti-Semitism on campus.

Last week the Ivy League university announced a comprehensive package of measures to appease the White House, including "improvements to our disciplinary processes."

Columbia said it would require protesters to identify themselves when challenged, even if they wear masks, as many did during the height of the pro-Palestinian protests.

It also announced the expansion of its security team, including the hiring of 36 officers empowered to remove or arrest those that break university rules.

The Trump administration had demanded that the university deploy external oversight, but the school stopped short of that, instead vowing to engage with outside academics on the issue.

Separately, a number of university professors sued the Trump administration in Massachusetts Tuesday, arguing its campaign targeting foreign academics was illegal.