The radical Leftist Trump resistance think they have him cornered. They have another thing coming.
Because President Trump was handed a silver bullet in a huge legal battle he’s facing.
Stunning Twist in Deportation Case: Legal Group Defending Pro-Hamas Protester Previously Warned Against Supporting Terrorists
In a jaw-dropping revelation ahead of a high-stakes legal showdown, a prominent organization aiding immigrants has been caught in a glaring contradiction. The group, which is now fiercely defending a Palestinian protester against deportation by the Trump administration, had earlier cautioned noncitizens that vocal support for terrorist groups like Hamas could jeopardize their status in the United States. This development adds a dramatic layer of intrigue to an already contentious battle over free speech, national security, and immigration law.
Mahmoud Khalil, a Syrian national and a central figure in Columbia University’s pro-Hamas encampment, faces deportation after Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested him on March 8, 2025. His legal team, consisting of Ramzi Kassem, Naz Ahmad, and Shezza Dallal from the Creating Law Enforcement Accountability and Responsibility (CLEAR) project at the City University of New York (CUNY), argues that the Trump administration’s move violates his First Amendment rights. They’ve joined other organizations in a lawsuit to block the deportation, portraying Khalil’s activism as a legitimate expression of pro-Palestinian sentiment.
But here’s the twist: CLEAR, the very group now championing Khalil’s cause, has long advised immigrants to steer clear of the exact behavior Khalil is accused of—publicly backing terrorists. In its own “know your rights” materials, CLEAR warns that “inciting, advocating, declaring public approval/support of, or persuading others to advocate or declare public approval/support of ‘terrorist activity’” or a “terrorist organization” can lead to deportation under federal law.
The group’s guidance even paraphrases the Immigration and Nationality Act, noting that “being a representative … of any group” endorsing terrorism poses a serious risk for noncitizens. “If you are a non-citizen who has exercised your First Amendment right to associate with any organization or a specific cause, consider consulting an attorney before applying for any immigration benefits or appearing for any immigration-related interviews,” CLEAR explicitly states.
This advice isn’t buried in fine print—it’s a cornerstone of CLEAR’s outreach. A recently resurfaced video shows Dallal herself delivering a “know your rights” presentation, reiterating the same warning to activists. Yet now, CLEAR’s lawyers are in federal court arguing the opposite, claiming Khalil’s leadership of a pro-Hamas encampment is protected speech. Neither Dallal nor CLEAR responded to multiple requests for comment from the Daily Caller News Foundation, leaving the contradiction hanging in the air.
Khalil’s troubles began in April 2024, when Columbia University briefly suspended him for his role in an illegal tent encampment organized by Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD). As a “lead negotiator,” he pushed the university to divest financially from Israel. The encampment wasn’t subtle—protesters openly praised Hamas and its October 7, 2023, massacre in Israel while intimidating Jewish students. The Trump administration, citing national security, is now locked in a court fight to send Khalil packing.
Constitutional law expert Ilya Shapiro, a senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute, sides with CLEAR’s original stance. “Certain kinds of statements” supporting terrorism can indeed make a foreigner “removable,” he told the reporters.
“Noncitizens certainly have First Amendment rights, in the sense that they can’t be criminally prosecuted for speech outside a narrow range of cases ([such as] incitement of violence), but screening or vetting under the Immigration and Nationality Act includes looking at statements as evidence of support for or membership in organizations that are Nazi, Communist, authoritarian, or terrorism-oriented, among other disqualifying criteria,” Shapiro explained. He believes Khalil’s actions cross that line.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio has been even blunter. “Neither Khalil nor any noncitizen is entitled to a visa or green card, especially if they are ‘being a supporter of Hamas and coming into our universities and turning them upside down and being complicit in what are clearly crimes of vandalization, complicit in shutting down learning institutions,’” Rubio said.
Khalil’s legal team insists his activism is merely pro-Palestinian, not pro-terrorism. A March 13 lawsuit claims, “opponents of these students’ messages … frequently characterized peaceful protest and any speech in favor of Palestinian rights as inherently supportive of Hamas and antisemitic.” “He does not have any affiliation, does not support Hamas,” another of his lawyers told WABC-TV. But the evidence tells a different story.
CUAD, the group Khalil helped lead, has deep ties to terrorist supporters. Before the encampment, it hosted a virtual “Resistance 101” event featuring speakers from Samidoun, a pro-Hamas organization flagged by the Treasury Department as an illegal backer of the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP). One speaker was Khaled Barakat, a veteran PFLP terrorist leader; another was a Samidoun figure who declared, “there is nothing wrong with being a member of Hamas, being a leader of Hamas, being a fighter in Hamas.” Samidoun didn’t respond to inquiries.
Happening now: protesters @BarnardCollege are handing out pamphlets written by the Hamas Media Office justifying October 7th.
This is terrorist support in its rawest and most obvious form. pic.twitter.com/1t2V9HDNvw
— Elisha (Lishi) Baker (@LishiBaker) March 5, 2025
CUAD’s rhetoric only got louder. In a November Substack piece, the group hailed Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar after his death in October, writing, “Yahya Sinwar and his resilience will live in the hearts of many,” and celebrating his role in the October 7 attacks as “resistance by any means necessary.” Khalil and CUAD also spearheaded a February takeover of a building at Columbia-affiliated Barnard College, where protesters handed out Hamas’s official manifesto defending the massacre.
Despite this, liberals have rallied around Khalil as a free speech icon. Over 100 House Democrats wrote on March 14 that Trump is using “the playbook of authoritarians” by targeting him. The Department of Justice, defending the government in court, declined to comment.
The Trump administration isn’t backing down. On March 14, news emerged of another Columbia student opting to self-deport rather than face immigration officials cracking down on alleged terrorist sympathizers. “It is a privilege to be granted a visa to live and study in the United States of America,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said. “When you advocate for violence and terrorism that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country.”
As the legal battle looms, CLEAR’s own warnings hang over the case like a storm cloud. The group’s past advice aligns with the law—and with Trump’s position—casting serious doubt on its current defense of Khalil. This stunning inconsistency could prove to be a game-changer in the fight over his fate.
Stay tuned to the DC Daily Journal.
