Mahmoud Khalil declined to explicitly condemn Hamas during a live interview on CNN, the US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) posted Tuesday on X/Twitter.
During the interview, a CNN journalist directly asked Khalil, a former Columbia University student who was arrested in March for leading a pro-Palestinian protest in New York City, whether he condemned the terrorist organization.
Rather than answering the question directly, Khalil responded, “It’s disingenuous to ask about condemning Hamas while the Palestinians are the ones being starved now by Israel,” adding, “I hate this selective conversation.”
At that point, the interviewer interrupted, explaining that the question was relevant, especially in light of statements made by the Trump administration accusing Khalil of sympathizing with Hamas. “So it is very important to actually ask that question in this broad conversation,” she said.
Khalil concluded the exchange by stating, “I simply asked and protested the war in Palestine.”
"Mahmoud Khalil refuses to condemn Hamas because he IS a terrorist sympathizer not because DHS ‘painted’ him as one. He ‘branded’ himself as an antisemite through his own hateful behavior and rhetoric," DHS wrote.
"It is a privilege to be granted a visa or green card to live and study in the United States of America. The Trump Administration acted well within its statutory and constitutional authority to detain Khalil, as it does with any alien who advocates for violence, glorifies and supports terrorists, harasses Jews, and damages property."
Who is Mahmoud Khalil?
A leader of Columbia University's Apartment Divest, Khalil, was detained by ICE in early March.
Later that month, the US government alleged that Khalil withheld that he worked for UNRWA in his visa application, saying that these are grounds for deportation, Reuters reported.
Anti-Israel activists chained themselves to a Columbia University entrance gate in early April in a protest based on the belief that a member of the board of trustees reported Khalil to ICE.
Khalil accused Columbia University of laying the "groundwork" for his "abduction" in an op-ed he dictated to the Columbia Spectator in early April, addressing his detention for allegedly spreading Hamas propaganda.