Protestor Mahmoud Khalil is one person facing deportation
Green card holders in the US are at risk of deportation, says Tom Homan.
As of last year, there were approximately 13 million green card holders in the United States, with 10 million of them eligible for U.S. citizenship, according to The Economic Times.
Generally, green card holders enjoy the security of not being subject to deportation. However, this status can change if they commit certain offenses, such as failing to report a change of address to immigration authorities or engaging in marriage fraud. These violations can jeopardize their residency status and lead to deportation.
Mahmoud Khalil, a green card holder married to a U.S. citizen, was arrested over the weekend by federal immigration agents. Although no charges have been officially announced yet, The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) has accused Khalil of “leading activities aligned with Hamas.”
Since returning to office, Donald Trump has vowed to crack down on pro-Palestinian protesters at college campuses, calling Khalil’s arrest “the first of many to come.” Trump’s border czar, Tom Homan, has since echoed similar sentiments, suggesting that more arrests could follow.
In response to Khalil’s detainment, Tom Homan addressed the situation on Fox Business, stating: “Did he violate the terms of his visa? Did he violate the terms of his residency here—committing crimes, attacking Israeli students, locking down buildings, destroying property? Absolutely.”
However, Homan did not address the fact that Khalil has yet to be convicted of any crime, which contradicts his claims regarding the Syrian-born man’s visa violation. “Any resident alien who commits a crime is eligible for deportation,” Homan continued. “And that’s just one out of many.”
Just two days after Khalil’s arrest, a judge issued a temporary block on the Trump administration’s efforts to deport him, ruling that he could not be removed “unless and until the Court orders otherwise.”
Khalil’s arrest has sparked widespread backlash and protests across the nation. Columbia University Professor Michael Thaddeus expressed his outrage, stating: “We’re facing a horrifying reality that our own student, a member of the Columbia community, has become a political prisoner here in the United States.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), a national Muslim civil rights advocacy group, also condemned the arrest, calling it “lawless.” In a statement to ABC 7, CAIR said: “The Department of Homeland Security’s lawless decision to arrest [Khalil] solely because of his peaceful anti-genocide activism represents a blatant attack on the First Amendment’s guarantee of free speech, immigration laws, and the very humanity of Palestinians.”
A hearing for Khalil has been scheduled for tomorrow (March 12), according to BBC News.
