The Department of Homeland Security said this week that the Columbia University student activist being held in detention should “self-deport” when asked why he was initially denied a request to hold his newborn baby during a family visit.
Mahmoud Kahlil, a Palestinian who grew up in a refugee camp in Syria and who holds a green card to legally reside in the United States, was arrested after leading pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia and has been imprisoned in a Louisiana Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention center for the last two months.
While in detention, Khalil made a request to see his wife and son, who was born on April 21, which was initially denied by DHS and the private prison company that operates the detention center. A judge overruled this denial, granting Khalil permission to have a “single, joint meeting” that follows “conditions (including as to length of time and confidentiality) that are appropriate for a substantial attorney-client meeting.”
When asked about the visit and the department’s reasoning for denying it, DHS Assistant Secretary Tricia McLaughlin told Newsweek: "Mahmoud Kahlil should use the CBP Home app to self-deport. The United States is offering illegal aliens $1,000 apiece and a free flight to self-deport now, which Kahlil can take advantage of by scheduling his departure through CBP Home. Parents, who are here illegally, can take control of their departure with the CBP Home App."
Brian Hauss, an attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union who is helping represent Khalil, said in a statement that McLaughlin and Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem “should try reading the Constitution. They might learn something.”
The legal director of the ACLU of Louisiana, Nora Ahmed, said in a statement that "Mahmoud Khalil deserves to hold his son. Noor Abdalla deserves to see her husband meet their child. And we, as a country, deserve better than policies rooted in cruelty."
Theodore Bunker ✉
Theodore Bunker, a Newsmax writer, has more than a decade covering news, media, and politics.
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