"Free Mahmoud Khalil": Senate Democrats openly support pro-Hamas foreign

The official account of the Democratic Senators on the Judiciary Committee posted a statement a short time ago today (Monday) calling simply for the release of Mahmoud Khalil, a foreign national accused of expressing open sympathy for Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.

The post, published by the verified account of the Senate Judiciary Democrats, whose ranking member is Senator Dick Durbin, the Democrats say "Free Mahmoud Khalil, with a photo of the foreign national attached (above).

Previously, the Department of Homeland Security's official account had this to say on the matter on X:

On March 9, 2025, in support of President Trump’s executive orders prohibiting anti-Semitism, and in coordination with the Department of State, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia University graduate student. Khalil led activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.

ICE and the Department of State are committed to enforcing President Trump’s executive orders and to protecting U.S. national security.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio also provided a link to an AP story describing these efforts, with the description: "We will be revoking the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported."

There is debate within America as to whether it is lawfully right to deport Khalil solely based on rhetorical support for Hamas, however objectionable.

Defenders say that since what Khalil did does not constitute a crime but rather protected speech, he should be allowed to stay. Opponents say that since the United States can attach conditions to visas that it cannot to citizens, deportation is still very much an option. The matter is likely to be decided in court in the near future.

The Democratic post, however, contained no explanation or justification for the demand to free Khalil, legal, political, or otherwise. Accounts fighting antisemitism throughout the world such as StopAntisemitism strongly attacked the statement in replies to the post.