Mohsen Mahdawi, freed from ICE custody, graduates from Columbia
3 Min Read
Palestinian student Mohsen Mahdawi was released from ICE detention just weeks ago, and has graduated from Columbia as he was cheered by his peers.
-
Mohsen Mahdawi, center, holds a photo of fellow student Mahmoud Khalil while posing for a photo with demonstrators outside the gates of Columbia University after graduating on May 19, 2025 in New York. (AP/Jake Offenhartz)
Palestinian student activist Mohsen Mahdawi, who was released from federal immigration detention just over two weeks ago, graduated from Columbia University on Monday to the applause and cheers from fellow students.
Mahdawi, 34, had been arrested by US immigration authorities in Colchester, Vermont, while attending a naturalization interview. On April 14, the Trump administration ordered his deportation, even though no criminal charges had been brought against him. His case became one of several involving international students targeted for their advocacy on behalf of Palestinians.
Mahdawi crossed the stage draped in a koufiyyeh, blowing a kiss and bowing to the audience in what one video captured as a moment of emotional triumph. Just outside Columbia’s gates, he joined a vigil, holding up a photograph of his classmate Mahmoud Khalil, who remains in federal custody in Louisiana.
Speaking to the Associated Press (AP), Mahdawi described the moment as bittersweet. “The Trump administration wanted to rob me of this opportunity,” he said. “They wanted me to be in a prison, in prison clothes, to not have education and to not have joy or celebration.”
He was released from detention two weeks after his arrest by a judge who criticized the government’s actions as reminiscent of McCarthy-era repression. While authorities have not accused him of any criminal activity, they claimed that his beliefs might undermine US foreign policy, using an obscure statute that allows the secretary of state to revoke legal status on that basis.
Columbia’s role under scrutiny
Mahdawi graduated with a bachelor's degree in philosophy from Columbia’s School of General Studies, but said the university’s leadership had failed to protect him and other Palestinian students. He accused Columbia of bending to pressure from the Trump administration, referencing the university’s decision to install new leadership in its Middle Eastern studies department and its silence regarding the arrests of both himself and Khalil.
“The senior administration is selling the soul of this university to the Trump administration, participating in the destruction and the degradation of our democracy,” he said.
Khalil was scheduled to receive a master’s degree in international studies later this week. His legal status remains unresolved as a federal judge reviews his detention.
Though Mahdawi had been admitted to a master's program in peacekeeping and conflict resolution at Columbia for the upcoming fall semester, he is now reconsidering his options after being informed that he would not receive financial aid.
Despite the obstacles, Mahdawi says he remains committed to advocating for the Palestinian cause, expressing gratitude for the support he’s received from the broader Columbia community.
“When I went on the stage, the message was very clear and loud: they are cheering up for the idea of justice, for the idea of peace, for the idea of equality, for the idea of humanity,” he said. “And nothing will stop us from continuing to do that. Not the Trump administration nor Columbia University.”
