Mohsen Mahdawi, a pro-Palestinian advocate and permanent U.S. resident, was arrested during a naturalization interview, leading to charges of unconstitutional targeting for his political activism. His attorneys argue the Trump administration detained him in retaliation for his advocacy on behalf of Palestinians. A federal court has been petitioned to protect Mahdawi's First Amendment rights. His case is part of a broader trend, with several pro-Palestinian protestors facing similar detentions nationwide, raising serious concerns about civil liberties and political repression in the context of a contentious political climate.
"The Trump administration detained Mohsen Mahdawi in direct retaliation for his advocacy on behalf of Palestinians and because of his identity as a Palestinian," one of Mahdawi's attorneys, Luna Droubi, said in a statement. "His detention is an attempt to silence those who speak out against the atrocities in Gaza. It is also unconstitutional."
Mahdawi's attorneys filed a petition in federal court in Vermont after his arrest, requesting a judge end what they view as the federal government targeting non-citizens for exercising their First Amendment rights. He hasn't been charged with a crime, according to his attorneys.
U.S. District Judge William K. Sessions on Monday night ordered that immigration authorities cannot move Mahdawi out of Vermont without the court's approval.
His arrest was the latest in a series of detentions by federal immigration authorities of pro-Palestinian protestors at Columbia and at other university campuses across the country.
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