Hawzah News Agency- His arrest comes as part of US President Donald Trump's promised crackdown on some anti-Israel activists.

Mahmoud Khalil, a student at the university's School of International and Public Affairs, was arrested by US Department of Homeland Security agents at his university residence on Saturday evening, the Student Workers of Columbia labor union said in a statement.

His wife is a US citizen, eight months pregnant, according to news reports, and he holds a US permanent residency green card, the union said. His arrest was condemned by civil rights groups as an attack on protected political speech.

In an interview with Reuters hours before his arrest on Saturday about Trump's criticism of student protesters, Khalil said he was concerned that he was being targeted by the government for speaking to the media.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio shared a news report of Khalil's arrest on social media on Sunday, adding the comment: "We will be revoking the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported." He did not elaborate and spokespeople for Rubio did not respond to questions.

The Department of Homeland Security said in a social media post that it had arrested Khalil because he has "led activities aligned to Hamas," without elaborating. DHS spokespeople did not respond to Reuters questions.

US law forbids providing "material support or resources" to groups the US has designated as terrorist organizations, including Hamas. That law does not define or prohibit "activities aligned to" these groups, and DHS spokespeople did not respond to questions about their accusation.

Neither department has said Khalil is accused of giving material support to Hamas, or of any other crime.

Khalil's detention is one of the first efforts by Trump, a Republican who returned to the White House in January, to fulfill his promise to seek the deportation of some foreign students involved in the pro-Palestinian protest movement, which he has called antisemitic. The US-supported Israeli assault on the Gaza strip that began in October 2023 has led to months of pro-Palestinian and anti-Israel protests that have roiled college campuses in the US and overseas.

Khalil calls it an anti-war movement that includes Jewish students and groups, who reject antisemitism allegations. He was one of the lead negotiators with school administrators for the pro-Palestinian student protesters, some of whom set up tent encampments on Columbia lawns last year and seized control of an academic building for several hours before Columbia called in police to arrest them.

Source: IQNA