Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) met with Mahmoud Khalil in Washington, less than a month after the anti-Israel activist was released from detention.
Sanders, who posted a photo of himself on Tuesday with his hand around Khalil, who wore a Palestinian flag pin on his lapel, wrote that the “Palestinian student at Columbia University” was “imprisoned for 104 days by the Trump administration for opposing Netanyahu’s illegal and horrific war in Gaza. Outrageous.”
“We must not allow Trump to destroy the First Amendment and freedom to dissent,” the Jewish senator stated.
Earlier in the day, CNN aired an interview with Khalil, during which he refused to condemn Hamas.
“Mahmoud Khalil refuses to condemn Hamas because he is a terrorist sympathizer not because DHS ‘painted’ him as one. He ‘branded’ himself as antisemite through his own hateful behavior and rhetoric,” the U.S. Department of Homeland Security stated.
“It is a privilege to be granted a visa or green card to live and study in the United States of America,” it added. “The Trump administration acted well within its statutory and constitutional authority to detain Khalil, as it does with any alien who advocates for violence, glorifies and supports terrorists, harasses Jews and damages property.”
The recent Columbia graduate and U.S. permanent resident remained in custody until June 20, when a federal judge ordered his release on bail. He is suing the Trump administration for $20 million, alleging wrongful detention and prosecution over his support for Palestinians.
I met with Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian student at Columbia University, who was imprisoned for 104 days by the Trump administration for opposing Netanyahu’s illegal & horrific war in Gaza. Outrageous.
— Sen. Bernie Sanders (@SenSanders) July 22, 2025
We must not allow Trump to destroy the First Amendment & freedom to dissent. pic.twitter.com/2iaIi8dUWF
