"A United States immigration judge has blocked the Trump administration from deporting Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palenstinian student who led protests at Columbia University against the war in Gaza. Judge Nina Froes said she had terminated the case due to a procedural misstep by government attorneys, according to the ruling which was made public on Tuesday. The lawyers had failed to certify an official document they intended to use as evidence."
"Mahdawi says ruling an 'important step' towards 'justice' "I am grateful to the court for honoring the rule of law and holding the line against the government's attempts to trample on due process," Mahdawi said in a statement released by his attorneys. "This decision is an important step towards upholding what fear tried to destroy: the right to speak for peace and justice," he said."
"Meanwhile, Tricia McLaughlin, a spokesperson for the Department of Homeland Security, responded to the development, casting Mahdawi as a leader of "pro-terrorist riots" whose visa should be revoked. "No activist judge, not this one or any other, is going to stop us from doing that," she said in an emailed statement to the AP news agency. The ruling marks the latest setback for the US government's efforts to expel pro-Palestinian campus activists"
Immigration Judge Nina Froes terminated deportation proceedings against Mohsen Mahdawi after government attorneys failed to certify an official document intended as evidence. Mahdawi is a Palestinian-born legal permanent resident who led pro-Gaza protests at Columbia University and was targeted for deportation by the Trump administration. Mahdawi called the decision an important step toward upholding free expression and due process. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson labeled him a leader of “pro-terrorist riots” and said his visa should be revoked. The administration may appeal the termination. A separate judge recently blocked deportation of Tufts graduate student Rumeysa Ozturk.
Read at www.dw.com
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