Arrest of Palestinian Columbia activist divides US Jews
Rabbi Rachel Goldenberg speaks at a demonstration in support of Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, March 10, near Columbia University in New York City. (RNS photo/Fiona André)
The arrest of a former Columbia University graduate student who had a leading role on campus criticizing Israel’s war in Gaza has sparked sharp divisions within the US Jewish community.
Mahmoud Khalil, an activist in last year’s pro-Palestinian campus protests that led to tent encampments, was arrested by US immigration agents on Saturday as part of the Trump administration’s pledge to deport anti-Israel student activists. Khalil, who is of Palestinian descent but grew up in Syria, is a permanent resident of the United States.
His arrest was hailed by some sectors of the US Jewish community, including the Anti-Defamation League, an organization that fights antisemitism. The ADL released a statement applauding the “swift and severe consequences for those who provide material support to foreign terrorist organizations.” Khalil has not been charged with material or any other support to a terrorist organization.
