Columbia Student Detained By ICE Issues Defiant Message to Trump Upon Release: ‘I Am Not Afraid of You’
Amanda Swinhart/AP
The Columbia student who was recently detained during his citizenship interview sent a defiant message to President Donald Trump when he was released Wednesday.
On April 14, Mohsen Mahdawi was scheduled to appear at an immigration office to finalize his U.S. citizenship. Instead, he was met by ICE agents who quickly took him into custody. He was later taken to Northwest State Correctional Facility in St. Albans, Vermont.
Mahdawi was born in the West Bank and has been a legal resident in the U.S. for the last decade. At Columbia, he co-founded the university’s Palestinian Student Union with Mahmoud Khalil — another student who was taken by agents while on campus. As noted by reporting from The Associated Press, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in Mahdawi’s notice to appear in court that his presence in the country “would have serious adverse foreign policy consequences and would compromise a compelling U.S. foreign policy interest.”
On Wednesday, however, a judge ordered Mahdawi’s immediate release. Following the news, he was greeted outside the courtroom by dozens of supporters.
While outside, he spoke to supporters and even addressed Trump directly.
“And I am saying it clear and loud,” Mahdawi said. “To President Trump and his cabinet: I am not afraid of you.”
According to the AP’s report, the government can appeal his release, but for now, he’s allowed to leave the state and attend his graduation at Columbia.
