Federal authorities recently acknowledged that they arrested Mahmoud Khalil, an outspoken anti-Israel activist, without a warrant last month. This admission came to light through a legal filing by lawyers representing the Trump administration, which was made public on Thursday. They argued that the officers involved in the case believed they had no choice but to act due to concerns that Khalil might flee the scene.

Khalil, a graduate of Columbia University, was taken into custody on March 8 after an immigration officer deemed him a potential flight risk. According to the Department of Justice, the officer's assessment was based on Khalils alleged statement that he would not cooperate and intended to leave the location, as detailed in the filed papers. The legal documents state, [Khalil] stated that he would not cooperate and that he was going to leave the scene, leading the agent to conclude that immediate action was necessary.

The incident unfolded in upper Manhattan, where Khalil, 30, was approached by a Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agent while he was with his then-pregnant wife, Noor Abdalla. The agent asked Khalil to cooperate while Abdalla went inside their apartment to retrieve Khalils conditional residence card. However, Khalil reportedly refused to comply, prompting the agent to arrest him in the foyer of the building.

Following his arrest, Khalil was taken to a processing office in New York where he was served with a warrant. Nevertheless, the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) has contested the government's portrayal of the arrest, asserting that officers initially misled Khalil by claiming a warrant existed at the time of his apprehension.

Marc Van Der Hout, one of Khalils attorneys, expressed outrage at the government's admission of a warrantless arrest. In a press statement, he remarked, The governments admission is astounding, and it is completely outrageous that they tried to assert to the immigration judge and the world in their initial filing of the arrest report that there was an arrest warrant when there was none. Van Der Hout further stated that such actions should lead to the termination of Khalils proceedings.

Another attorney associated with Khalil's case, Amy Greer, claimed that Khalil had complied with all instructions given by authorities during his encounter. She characterized the situation as a troubling attempt by the Trump administration to rationalize what she termed the unlawful arrest and detention of a human rights advocate. This is clearly yet another desperate attempt by the Trump administration to justify its unlawful arrest and detention of human rights defender Mahmoud Khalil, who is now, by the governments own tacit admission, a political prisoner of the United States, she stated.

Khalil, who is originally from Syria, has been detained in a Louisiana immigration facility since his arrest. His involvement in campus protests against Israel, particularly during the ongoing conflict in Gaza, has raised questions about his legal status in the United States. Although he is a legal permanent resident, the White House contends that his beliefs and statements are contrary to U.S. foreign policy. An immigration judge in Louisiana recently ruled that Khalil could potentially be deported, though he retains the right to appeal this decision.