Activist Mahmoud Khalil sues Trump for $20 million

Mahmoud Khalil, a leading figure in US pro-Palestinian student protests, has filed a USD 20 million lawsuit against the Trump administration, accusing it of wrongful arrest and politically motivated detention during a sweeping crackdown on campus dissent.

Khalil, a 30-year-old legal US permanent resident, was detained by immigration authorities in March and held for over three months in a Louisiana detention center before being released on bail last month. A judge ordered his release after mounting legal pressure and public scrutiny.

The lawsuit, supported by the Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), alleges that the administration "carried out its illegal plan to arrest, detain, and deport Mr. Khalil ‘in a manner calculated to terrorize him and his family.’" It further claims Khalil endured "severe emotional distress, economic hardship, and damage to his reputation."

Khalil, who is married to a US citizen and has a US-born child, was a graduate of Columbia University and a visible organizer in the wave of student protests against the US-backed war on Gaza. His arrest followed his high-profile activism, with the Trump administration labeling him a national security risk.

"Nothing can restore the 104 days stolen from me. The trauma, the separation from my wife, the birth of my first child that I was forced to miss," Khalil said in a statement. "There must be accountability for political retaliation and abuse of power."

Khalil described his detention experience as “horrendous,” recalling being “in a dorm with over 70 men, absolutely no privacy, lights on all the time.”

Trump officials justified efforts to deport Khalil by citing alleged “serious adverse foreign policy consequences” stemming from his continued presence in the US. The move came as part of a broader campaign by the former president against elite universities, including threats to pull federal funding and revoke accreditations over foreign student activism.

Though now free, Khalil’s legal team has expressed ongoing concern for his safety, warning that threats against him may continue outside detention. Khalil called the lawsuit a “first step toward accountability.”