US Politics |OT|

[SvennoJ]

US alleges Columbia’s Khalil covered up his work for UNRWA

The Reuters news agency is reporting that the US government, in a court brief on Sunday, alleged that the Columbia University student withheld that he worked for the UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) in his visa application and claims that should be grounds for deportation.

UNRWA, which provides food and healthcare to Palestinian refugees, has become a flashpoint in Israel’s war. The US had previously halted funding to UNRWA after Israel claimed that 12 of the agency’s employees had been involved in the Hamas-led attack on Israel on October 7.

According to Reuters, the US court notice also accuses Khalil of leaving off his visa application that he worked for the Syria office in the British embassy in Beirut and that he was a member of the group, Columbia University Apartheid Divest.

Khalil, an Algerian citizen of Palestinian descent and a permanent resident of the US, is being held at a detention facility in Louisiana.

At the time of his arrest, the US government accused him of “leading activities aligned to Hamas”.

A judge has ordered Khalil not to be deported while his lawsuit challenging his detention, known as a habeas petition, is heard in another federal court.


Some background

In 2022, Mahmoud Khalil immigrated to the U.S. on a student visa to attend SIPA. Khalil married his wife, Noor Abdalla, in New York in 2023 after a seven-year long-distance relationship. Abdalla is a U.S. citizen and a dentist. Khalil then received a green card in 2024.

Between June and November 2023, Khalil worked as a political affairs officer with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) in New York.

Israel started its smear campaign against UNRWA early 2024, then moved to oust UNRWA in the second half of 2024, all based on no/fake evidence. The US however was all to eager to stop funding UNWRA since early 2024.

Anyway Khalil hadn't even worked for UNWRA yet when applying for a Visa. And for his green card, he worked for UNWRA in New York...


As for his British government work:

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/mar/13/mahmoud-khalil-columbia-british-government-work

A detained Columbia University graduate threatened with deportation after the Trump administration claimed he poses a risk to US foreign policy is a former employee of the British government who was extensively vetted before working at the embassy in Beirut.

Andrew Waller, a former British diplomat who worked with Khalil at the UK office for Syria, a diplomatic mission housed inside the British embassy in Beirut, described Khalil as a thoughtful individual and highly valued colleague during his government service.

“This is a naked example of the US administration arresting someone for their political opinions, and I think the British government should be exercised about this,” he said.“He is a former British government employee who was vetted and well liked.”


This sets an even more dangerous precedent if the Trump administration gets way with his deportation.