Yesterday an immigration court ruled that Mahmoud Khalil can be deported. This week, Marco Rubio, the Secretary of State stated that Khalil's ties and support to Hamas were sufficient and credible grounds for revoking his green card status. In spite of the ruling that he can be legally deported he is eligible for 'due process', which means he has the right to appeal. Legal experts have claimed that such formality likely will not change the lower court's ruling that he can be deported. As a green card holder, Khalil had legal status as a resident alien. To be clear, he was not a US citizen, nor did he have the same rights of free speech that citizens have. His actions and speech were clearly indicative of subversion and espousing support for a terrorist organization. Pretty solid ground for declaring that he should be deported. Marco Rubio declared that Khalil was a risk to national security. Once again, legal experts have supported this to be a true statement. We should all rejoice in the fact that a government official and an immigration court took decisive action before any bodily harm or loss of life occurred. Not everyone agrees with the outcome, but due process has taken place.
For those who may be unsure or support the perspective that Khalil was denied his right of free speech, let me offer this. American citizens are guaranteed the right of free speech. That sentence must be read and interpreted literally. Khalil is not and has never been an American citizen. As such, he is not entitled to the same right of free speech that an American citizen would be in similar circumstances.
Is Khalil actually a threat to national security? I mean, he's just a Columbia University grad student participating in campus protests, right? Yes, that is right. Except for the word 'just'. As Paul Harvey would famously say, "And now for the rest of the story..." Khalil was born to Palestinian parents in Syria and is a citizen of Algeria. He worked for a time at the British Embassy in Lebanon. He also worked as a public affairs officer for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestinian refugees. UNRWA has functioned as a de facto arm of Hamas. A number of UNRWA officials have been implicated in the October 7 attack on Israel. Khalil improperly omitted his UNRWA work history from his green card application. That alone is sufficient basis for revoking his green card status and deporting him.
Khalil had become prominent in the campus uprisings that followed the October 7 atrocities, featuring the illegal occupation of university buildings that had to be ended by NYC police. Illegal encampments on university grounds that had to be dismantled by NYC police, and illegal harassment of Jewish students that violated university standards and federal civil rights. Khalil claimed to be a 'senior associate' of Columbia University Apartheid Divest. CUAD expressly backs armed resistance by Hamas and recently rescinded an apology it had offered after one of its members said Columbia should be "grateful that I'm not just going out and murdering Zionists." Khalil positioned himself as the pro-Hamas intermediary with university administration from which they were seeking to coerce concessions, including divestment from Israel. Even the most casual observer could reasonably conclude that such is not constitutionally protected speech, it's extortionary.
So, Khalil is getting due process. He'll also be getting a one way ticket to a resort in El Salvador, courtesy of the United States. Are these proceedings legally and constitutionally sound? Most experts and immigration lawyers are saying yes. Is it right and just? Look at it this way: he is advocating and promoting the views (possibly more than mere views...) of a known terrorist organization. This particular terrorist organization executed a surprise and barbaric attack on Israel on October 7, 2023. Hundreds of Jews in Israel, including dozens of American citizens were killed, maimed, raped and taken hostage. Many of those hostages died in captivity and their bodies yet to be surrendered. A truce was agreed with Hamas to surrender hostages and bodies, which, after releasing a few, Hamas ignored the truce.
The ilk of terrorist organizations include, Hamas, al Qaeda, Taliban, Hezbollah, ISIS, the Islamic State, Al-Shabaab... All of the organizations have demonstrated to the world their tunnel-vision idealism, their proclivity towards extreme violence to both military and civilians, and their willingness to die for the cause. Many US soldiers have died at their hands. So if you're not sure if deporting Mahmoud Khalil is justice, just ask any combat veteran.
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