Agustín Marti- La Marx United States

On March 8 of 2025, Mahmoud Khalil was arrested by Department of Homeland Security (DHS) agents and is being held in Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) custody. Mahmoud is a graduate of Columbia University an activist from Algeria and of Palestinian origin, who took part in the Gaza Solidarity Encampment last year. Authorities threaten to deport Mahmoud, but thousands of people took to the streets in New York City on March 10, they marched to demand the immediate release of Mahmoud Khalil.

The DHS agents who waited for him and his wife at their Columbia University housing, said that his student visa was being revoked in line with Donald Trump's recent executive order and subsequent directives to deport pro-Palestine student activists. When Mahmoud's lawyer explained that he resides in the United States with a green card, the agents told her that they were revoking that too and took him into custody. Mahmoud disappeared after his arrest, with his family and lawyer unable to locate him for hours. When his wife went to visit him in a New Jersey detainment center, she was told he was transferred to an unknown location. 

Now it is being reported that Mahmoud has been sent to an ICE facility in Louisiana. Mahmoud's arrest is a example of how the government intends to stop the Palestine solidarity movement which in turn is part of the 3rd Intifada, the world mobilization united to the struggle of the Palestinian people. In 2024, the Intifada and mobilizations in favor of Palestine have politically hit the imperialism of the United States, and your policy that support Israel. That's the reazon why Trump government want to stop pro-Palestinian mobilizations in universities persecuting pro-Palestine activists, looking for suppress the right to protest and our democratic rights. Some university authorities are working hand-in-hand with these attacks, allowing ICE to operate on their campuses

The People's Response to Trump's Policy 

The Palestine solidarity movement is only one expression of the American revolution of XXI Century in which growing rage felt by young people who see no future under capitalism. The Palestine solidarity movement and the 3erd Intifada are discrediting all capitalist institutions, Universities, once seen as beacons of free inquiry, are now exposed for what they always were: profit-driven businesses and bastions of capitalist ideology. Protesters are calling for Mahmoud 's release, but they are going further uniting the struggles of immigrants, the student movement, universities, and the pro-Palestine movement more broadly. To know more about the American revolution of XXI Century click here.

Outrage exploded immediately after the Mahmoud 's detention with a petition circulating online to demand his immediate release which has already received over one million signatures. Protests in New York have also been announced in Chicago and other cities, based on a nationwide call from Palestinian rights organizations, democratic rights organizations, students, faculty, that are planning a walkout and other actions to continue the fight. The detainment of Mahmoud Khalil follows the expulsion of Pro-Palestine student activists from Barnard College, a sister university of Columbia University, which makes it more necessary than ever the broad solidarity.

Donald Trump's loudmouth later took to social media to say that Khalil's arrest would be the first of many as part of a sweeping, seeking to intimidate activists and the people. In response, students and faculty on campus are beginning to fight and the workers union, Student Workers of Columbia, released a letter to Columbia administration urging them to stand up against the attacks by the Trump administration and, among other things, to establish "Columbia as a sanctuary campus for noncitizens; refusing to cooperate with immigration authorities investigating students, faculty, and staff…". Faculty entered the fight, leading a press conference to denounce Mahmoud's arrest. 

Mahmoud's Freedom Struggle Achieves First Triumphs 

Mahmoud's struggle for freedom, and immediate mobilizations have achieved their first victories. Since Mahmoud's detention on Saturday night, there have been protests and walkouts all over the country, including actions like rallies and sit-ins organized by groups like Jewish Voice for Peace, who succefully occupied Trump Tower. 

Three million people have signed an online petition calling for his release. As a result a judge temporarily blocked the deportation, and the court held a hearing to decide whether Mahmoud's transfer to a federal detention facility in Louisiana violated the law. 

It is a first win that the Mahmoud's deportation was temporarily blocked. It shows the immense power of the democratic campaign to free him, and that the 3rd Intifada is still alive because the struggle of the Palestinian people continues beyond the ceasefire in Gaza. But in order to decisively stop his deportation, we need everyone to stand up in our workplaces, universities, and in the streets. We must build a movement based on solidarity: if they touch one of us, we all rise up. From this point of view the Trump policy is failing: He hoped that the detention of Mahmoud would stop the movement for Palestine and the movement at universities — instead, there's a resurgence. From La Marx US we call for Free Mahmoud Khalil, joining and organize a united struggle against Trump and your policy.