Palestinian graduate arrested in US worked for UK 'flagship soft power policy'

Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian-American Columbia University graduate, was detained by U.S. immigration authorities over the weekend, the Middle East Eye has learned. He had worked for the British government's "flagship soft power policy" for many years. Khalil, a U.S. permanent resident, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents on Saturday night.

A federal judge has temporarily blocked his deportation, and Khalil is currently awaiting trial in a federal prison in Louisiana. Former U.S. President Donald Trump posted on his Truth Social platform on Monday, describing Khalil as a "radical foreign pro-Hamas student" and declaring his arrest as "the first of many to come."

Trump stated, "We know there are many more students at Columbia and other universities across the country involved in pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activities, and the Trump administration will not tolerate this behavior." Khalil obtained a master's degree from Columbia University's School of International and Public Affairs in December last year and was one of the main student negotiators during the pro-Palestinian campus encampment activities in the spring of 2024.

However, the Middle East Eye has found that he previously served as a project manager in the Syria Office at the British Embassy in Beirut from 2018 to 2022. Online records reviewed by the Middle East Eye show that Khalil served as the local manager for the UK government's prestigious international scholarship program, the Syria Chevening Program, as well as the Conflict, Stability and Security Fund.

Former British diplomat Andrew Waller, who served as a policy advisor in the Syria Office during Khalil's tenure, told the Middle East Eye that the U.S. government's description of Khalil is false and defamatory. Waller said, "He went through a vetting process to get that job and was cleared to handle sensitive UK government issues."

Waller added, "What Trump has done is completely defamatory. Mahmoud is a very kind and conscientious person, and he was well-liked by his colleagues in the Syria Office. You won't find anyone who says a bad word about him; he was very competent in his job." The Chevening Scholarship is funded by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), and its mission is to "support UK foreign policy priorities and achieve FCDO objectives by building lasting positive relationships with future leaders, influencers and decision makers."

Waller described it as "the UK's flagship soft power policy." "It brings the brightest students from around the world to UK universities. Mahmoud was responsible for managing its Syria program and interviewed hundreds, if not thousands, of applicants on behalf of the UK government." Waller recalled that Khalil was also a "local staff political officer" responsible for providing "contextual understanding and language skills to translate meeting content."

Waller stated, "This is really interesting. Less than two weeks ago, JD Vance was scolding Keir Starmer on the issue of free speech, and then the U.S. goes and kidnaps Mahmoud Khalil simply because he organized student protests." U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin told the Middle East Eye on Monday that Khalil's arrest was "in support of President Trump's executive order banning anti-Semitism." "Khalil led activities associated with Hamas, a designated terrorist organization."

Hours later, Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced that the U.S. would "revoke the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in the United States in order to deport them." However, neither Rubio nor the Department of Homeland Security provided any details as to how Khalil's activities at Columbia University, where he openly played the role of a student representative negotiating with the school administration, constituted support for Hamas. The Middle East Eye has contacted the UK Foreign Office for comment.