Hostage families sue Mahmoud Khalil and Columbia protest leaders for aiding Hamas

The lawsuit, which was filed Monday in Manhattan federal court, accuses Khalil and the groups of "aiding and abetting Hamas' continuing acts of international terrorism."

Khalil, who was detained in March, is described as one of the key figures behind the anti-Israel protests that erupted on the Columbia campus following the October 7 assault, which resulted in the deaths of approximately 1,200 people and the kidnapping of 251 others. The plaintiffs claim that these protests, which spread Hamas' propaganda, contributed to the terrorist group's objectives. The lawsuit alleges that the demonstrations involved violent acts, including assaults on Jewish students, property damage, and attacks on university employees. It also suggests that these protests were in direct response to Hamas's call for global support in its violent actions.

The lawsuit is backed by six families of hostages still held in Gaza, as well as several released hostages. Among the plaintiffs are Shlomi Ziv and Iris Weinstein Haggai, whose parents, Gadi and Judith Haggai, were murdered in the attack, along with three soldiers from the Israel Defense Forces. These families argue that the defendants are not protected by free speech rights because their actions were coordinated with a foreign terrorist organization.

In addition to the lawsuit, the U.S. government is pursuing deportation proceedings against Khalil. They claim that he failed to disclose his employment with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) when applying for a visa. This omission is being used as the basis for his potential deportation, with the government asserting that his continued presence in the U.S. could harm foreign relations.

The lawsuit also names several other individuals involved in Columbia's student groups, including Nerdeen Kiswani of Within Our Lifetime-United For Palestine, Maryam Alwan of Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine, and Cameron Jones of Columbia-Barnard Jewish Voice for Peace. The plaintiffs accuse these individuals of distributing pro-Hamas propaganda, further linking them to the terrorist organization.

The legal action highlights the broader tensions surrounding the role of university-based groups in political movements and their potential connections to global conflicts. The plaintiffs are invoking the U.S. Antiterrorism Act, which targets the support and promotion of terrorism, to argue that the defendants' actions went beyond protected speech.