Campus Protest Politics

Immigration Judge Nina Froes terminated deportation proceedings against Columbia activist Omar Mahdawi after the government relied on an uncertified photocopy of a Marco Rubio memo as a key piece of evidence asserting noncitizens could be expelled if their presence might undermine U.S. foreign‑policy interests. Mahdawi — a lawful permanent resident for about a decade who was arrested by ICE at what he believed was a citizenship interview in April — has been called a leader of “pro‑terrorist riots” by DHS, and his case, along with those of Columbia activist Mahmoud Khalil and Tufts student Rümeysa Öztürk, has been cited as part of a pattern of deportation attempts targeting pro‑Palestinian campus voices.