Palestinian Activist Khalil Returns to Columbia After US Detention
He told about 100 attendees his memoir appearance was a victory after accusing Columbia of erasing Palestinian voices and mishandling the 2024 protests.
- On Tuesday, October 27, Mahmoud Khalil, a figurehead of Gaza war protests, returned to Columbia University for the first time since his 2025 arrest during President Donald Trump's crackdown on pro-Palestinian activists.
- The 31-year-old Khalil was detained for three months without criminal charge before his June 2025 release; he held a memoir event attended by around 100 people on his return.
- Mark Goldfeder, CEO of the National Jewish Advocacy Center, asked the Justice Department to determine if the event violates Columbia's $200 million federal settlement regarding commitments against Jew-hatred.
- A Columbia University spokesperson stated the school remains "committed to rigorous debate, inquiry, and respectful dialogue," noting that an invitation does not signify institutional endorsement of a speaker's views.
- Khalil accused Columbia of seeking "to erase me, to erase any Palestinian voices on campus," calling the institution's response "repression" while continuing his legal push for campus access after suing in September.
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Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil returned to Columbia University for the first time since his arrest in 2025, describing his return as "a victory," accusing the University of suppressing student protests and seeking to silence Palestinian voices.
An activist returns to Columbia after his arrest in 2025 for protests against the war in Gaza, criticizing the university for its repression.Khalil accuses the institution of not protecting him from harassment and denounces his authoritarian response to the student demonstrations of 2024.
Palestinian activist Khalil returns to Columbia after US detention
The 31-year-old told AFP his presence for an event on his new memoir, attended by around 100 people, was a "victory," as he accused Columbia of seeking "to erase me, to erase any Palestinian voices on campus." He has slammed the Ivy League institution for its response to the 2024 student demonstrations, which included allowing New York police to clear protesters from its Manhattan campus in a heavy-handed operation. Columbia said at the time the…
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