Mahmoud Khalil, the Palestinian activist targeted in the Trump administration’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian demonstrations, is preparing to take his deportation case to the US Supreme Court, his lawyers confirmed Friday.
The move follows a narrow 6-5 ruling by the Third Circuit Court of Appeals, which declined to reconsider an earlier decision that cleared the way for Khalil’s removal proceedings to continue.
Brett Max Kaufman, senior counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union, said the latest ruling would not end the legal battle. He argued that federal courts must retain authority to intervene when immigration laws are allegedly used to punish individuals for protected political speech.
Kaufman warned that allowing the government to detain or deport someone over their public views could create a broader threat to freedom of expression in the United States.
Last week, Khalil’s legal team separately appealed the deportation order issued by the Board of Immigration Appeals, filing the case before the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals. Attorneys requested the court dismiss the proceedings entirely, claiming the immigration judge failed to consider crucial evidence.
The appeal also accuses government officials of improperly influencing the case by exerting pressure on the immigration judge overseeing the proceedings. The hearings took place within an immigration court system administered by the Justice Department rather than an independent judicial institution.
Baher Azmy, legal director of the Center for Constitutional Rights, said the legal team hopes the Supreme Court recognizes the wider implications of the appeals court decision for immigrants facing politically sensitive cases.
Khalil, who served as a spokesperson during pro-Gaza demonstrations at his university, is a lawful US resident. He was arrested by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement in March 2025 and remained in detention for more than three months.
A federal judge later determined that his detention violated constitutional protections. However, the Trump administration successfully appealed that ruling earlier this year, allowing immigration proceedings against him to continue.
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