Washington, D.C. – On Mar. 21, 2025, the Charity & Security Network (C&SN), in partnership with 36 civil society organizations (CSOs), sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, condemning the Trump Administration’s deployment of counter-terrorism rhetoric in the detention and attempted deportation of Mahmoud Khalil, on the basis of intentionally vague and unsubstantiated claims that he “led activities in support of Hamas, a designated Foreign Terrorist Organization”. The  organizations warned that Khalil’s detention is designed to create a chilling effect for civil society – in particular for those that advocate on issues related to Palestine.

“Khalil’s case is a political decision cloaked in the language of counter-terrorism with the intent to stifle protest,” stated the CSOs in the letter.

Following the Oct. 7 Hamas attacks and Israel’s subsequent U.S.-funded annihilation of Gaza – in which Israel has killed over 50,000 Palestinians and created a devastating humanitarian catastrophe, including numerous reports that Israel has blocked aid – Mahmoud Khalil helped organize various anti-war and pro-peace student protests at Columbia University. Protests at Columbia and other universities across the U.S., as well as organizations supporting such protests, have been the target of Republican and right-wing media attacks, with unfounded accusations and rhetoric intensifying under the Trump Administration, leading to revocation of visas and detentions of students involved with such protests.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Agents arrested Khalil near his home in New York City on Mar. 8. During the arrest, ICE statements indicated revocation of Khalil’s student visa due to “a State Department order”, despite Khalil being a lawful permanent resident.

The arrest was made under a rarely used, discretionary provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), Section 237 (a)(4)(C)(i), that permits the Secretary of State to deport individuals if their presence is believed to have “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States.”

In the letter to Secretary Rubio, the CSOs emphasized that the INA statute “offers no clear standard or process, allowing for the deprivation of rights based on opaque, often undisclosed determinations,” and that by invoking this provision while relying on counter-terrorism rhetoric in the media, the administration “is attempting to justify deportation without a criminal or evidentiary basis.”

The CSOs warned that Khalil’s case is emblematic of an ever-growing crackdown on the operating environment for nonprofit organizations and human rights defenders, who already face numerous challenges due to financial de-risking, legislative restrictions, and surveillance. They also urged the administration to cease the use of expansive counter-terrorism narratives to quell students, civil society, and open civic space.

“The discretionary use of immigration enforcement in this case reveals just how easily the tools of state power can be weaponized, under the guise of foreign policy, against individuals based on purported political threat. This is how civic space shrinks and authoritarianism grows — not with sweeping new laws, but with selective, strategic, and politicized targeting that send a warning across movements and society at large,” the CSOs emphasized.

C&SN, which advocates for the protection of civil society from the abuse of national security measures, will continue to monitor Mahmoud Khalil’s case with concern.

Read the full letter sent to Secretary Rubio and the list of signatories here.

Sincerely,

350 New Orleans
ActionAid USA
Adalah Justice Project
American Friends Service Committee
Asian Americans Advancing Justice – Atlanta
Center for Constitutional Rights
Charity & Security Network
CODEPINK
DAWN
Defending Rights & Dissent
Dignidad/The Right to Immigration Institute
Direct Action Everywhere
Endangered Species Coalition
Fridays For Future NYC
Friends of the Earth U.S.
Generation Common Good
Grassroots International
Hindus for Human Rights
Indivisible East Bay
Jewish Voice for Peace Action
Muslim Advocates
Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA)
Muslim Public Affairs Council
Muslims for Just Futures
Nonviolent Peaceforce
Oil & Gas Action Network
Oil Change International
Partnership for Civil Justice Fund
Partnership for the Advancement of New Americans (PANA)
Physicians for Social Responsibility Pennsylvania
Putnam Progressives
Sikh American Legal Defense and Education Fund (SALDEF)
Shoulder to Shoulder
The International Corporate Accountability Roundtable
Unitarian Universalist Service Committee
United Church of Christ
Vessel Project of Louisiana