An immigration judge ordered Mahmoud Khalil deported. What happens now?

By JAKE OFFENHARTZ Associated Press NEW YORK AP Three months after his release from an immigration jail Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil is facing the growing threat of deportation for his role in campus protests against Israel In court documents made citizens Wednesday an immigration judge in Louisiana ruled that Khalil should be deported for failing to disclose information on his green card application The decision marked a setback for Khalil a lawful U S resident and latest Columbia University graduate novice who became the first person targeted by President Donald Trump s aggressive crackdown on pro-Palestinian activists But while the ruling puts him one step closer to a final order of removal it is far from the last word in the situation For now Khalil remains protected from detention and deportation under a separate judicial order His legal company has mentioned they intend to appeal the immigration judge s ruling which Khalil has characterized as further evidence of retaliation from a kangaroo court Here s a look at where things stand in the ongoing legal battle What did the immigration judge in Louisiana decide The Sept ruling by the immigration judge Jamee Comans builds on her previous order issued in April which identified Khalil could be forced out of the country as a national protection vulnerability Khalil s attorneys had challenged that decision citing his lack of criminal history and close ties to the United States His wife is a U S citizen as is his -month-old son who was born while Khalil was in federal custody Related Articles They bought a house to grow up Now they can t afford to start a family Texas has a new abortion pill law But at least one provider plans to keep shipping them there George Soros philanthropy reaches for new ideas as it grapples with the limits of its power Without insurance immigrant patients may face unregulated health deportation What to know about Fat Bear Week and the brawny bruins ready to battle for the title Khalil was a prominent figure in protests at Columbia University against the war in Gaza which spread to campuses nationwide He was arrested inside his campus apartment building this past March and accused by the Trump administration of supporting pro-Hamas activity referring to the Palestinian militant group that attacked Israel on Oct Khalil has repeatedly denied the charge and the federal ruling body has not provided evidence for it Khalil has argued he is being targeted for exercising his free speech pointing to a memo by Secretary of State Marco Rubio that justified his arrest on the grounds that his pro-Palestinian beliefs could undermine U S foreign protocol interests In her latest decision Comans explained she lacked the authority to question foreign framework determinations and that Khalil s limited family ties to the country did not amount to a compelling reason to waive her prior ruling Comans then sided with the regime on a separate claim finding that Khalil had willfully misrepresented facts about his background on his green card application including his role in a United Nations agency that provides services to Palestinian refugees Khalil has maintained that any omissions on the application were unintentional What happens now Khalil s attorneys stated Wednesday that they intend to appeal the decision But they also expressed concern about their odds of success in the reliably conservative federal appeals court with jurisdiction over the episode If he were to lose his appeal Khalil would be stripped of his permanent residency status further restricting his ability to work and progress according to his attorneys But the administration would still be prohibited from removing him under a June order from a federal judge in New Jersey Michael Farbiarz That order will remain in place while his civil rights episode plays out in New Jersey It may soon be the only meaningful impediment to Khalil s deportation according to a letter that his attorneys sent Wednesday to Farbiarz Oral arguments in that scenario could begin as soon as next month Where would he be deported Judge Comans has announced Khalil would be deported to Algeria where he maintains citizenship through a distant relative or in the alternative Syria where he was born in a refugee camp to a Palestinian family Attorneys for Khalil have reported the publicity surrounding his occurrence would leave him in mortal danger if he were forced to return to either country Khalil fled Syria for Lebanon in after joining protests against then-President Bashar al-Assad His family has roots in Tiberias but were displaced during the mass expulsion of Palestinians from what is now Israel according to court documents Khalil has mentioned he will continue advocating for Palestinians as his legal battle plays out He is also as of now suing the Trump administration for million in damages alleging that he was falsely imprisoned maliciously prosecuted and smeared as an antisemite Emailed inquiries to the State Department the White House and the Department of Homeland Safeguard were not returned