Irina Park
On Wednesday April 30, Mohsen Mahdawi walked out of a federal courthouse after federal judge Geoffrey W. Crawford in Vermont found that his detention was a “great harm” to someone not charged with a crime, ordering his release from the Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans, Vermont two weeks after his detention. Mahdawi is a lawful permanent resident of the US who was detained for his pro-Palestinian activism in mid-April.
The State Department had justified Mahdawi’s detention and deportation proceedings by saying his protest activity in support of the Palestinian people’s liberation struggle and against the US-Zionist genocidal war was a threat to US foreign policy. This is the same justification used in the detention and deportation of other students and activists, including Mahmoud Khalil and Rumeysa Ozturk.
Mahdawi was greeted by a large crowd of supporters outside of the courthouse. Protests have been ongoing against the repression of the Palestinian solidarity movement. In response to the protests over the recent detention and deportation of pro-Palestinian activists, he stated to NPR in an interview that “seeing the people in the United States raising their voices, saying this is unjust and we don’t accept it gives me faith. Second, I believe in a system of democracy, and I have faith in the justice system here. And the last one, which is the most important to me, what gives me faith, is seeing the resilience and the strength in my people in Gaza.”
Mohsen Mahdawi is still fighting deportation after his release from detention, and his case remains open as Crawford reviews Mahdawi’s habeas corpus petition. Mahdawi was never accused of a crime; instead, Secretary of State Marco Rubio simply stated that his activism could be “personally determined” a threat to US genocidal imperialist policies, completely ignoring due process and democratic rights.
Mohsen Mahdawi’s lawyers requested a temporary restraining order to prevent federal officials from transferring him to conservative jurisdictions where his deportation could be sped through. He and Rumeysa Ozturk’s cases were reviewed on Tuesday, May 6. His lawyers have also stated he would be allowed to finish his academic program at Columbia. Upon his release, Mahdawi called for the release of Rumeysa Ozturk and Mahmoud Khalil, an end to US aid to Israel, and an end to the US-Zionist genocide in Gaza.
Image: Mahdawi greeting the crowd of supporters outside the courthouse, X, Brooklyn Dad Defiant!
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