NEW YORK: Federal immigration authorities denied Mahmoud Khalil’s request for a temporary release from detention to attend the birth of his first child, who was born Monday in New York, according to emails shared with The Associated Press.
Khalil, a Columbia University activist who has been held in a detention center in Jena, Louisiana for six weeks, requested a two-week furlough on Sunday morning, noting that his wife, Dr. Noor Abdalla, had gone into labor eight days earlier than expected.
His lawyers said he would be “open to any combination of conditions” to allow the release, including wearing an ankle monitor and attending regularly scheduled check-ins with immigration authorities.
Around 30 minutes later, Mellissa B. Harper, the New Orleans Field Office Director for US Immigrations and Customs, wrote back: “After consideration of the submitted information and a review of your client’s case, your request for furlough is denied.”
Abdalla said she had to give birth to a baby boy on Monday in New York without her husband by her side, which she called “a purposeful decision by ICE to make me, Mahmoud, and our son suffer.”
“My son and I should not be navigating his first days on earth without Mahmoud,” she added. “ICE and the Trump administration have stolen these precious moments from our family in an attempt to silence Mahmoud’s support for Palestinian freedom.”
A message seeking comment was left with ICE officials.
Khalil is a legal permanent US resident and graduate student who served as spokesperson for campus activists last year during large demonstrations at Columbia against Israel’s treatment of Palestinians and the war in Gaza.
He was detained by federal agents in the lobby of his Manhattan apartment on March 8, the first arrest in President Donald Trump’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian activists.
The Trump administration has not accused Khalil of criminal conduct, but has argued he should be expelled from the country for his beliefs.
An immigration judge in Louisiana ruled earlier this month that the government’s assertion that Khalil’s presence in the US posed “potentially serious foreign policy consequences” satisfied requirements for deportation.
A lawyer for Khalil said the ruling will be appealed to the Board of Immigration Appeals.
Palestinian protest leader Mahmoud Khalil detained by US misses son’s birth
https://arab.news/4n4qj
Palestinian protest leader Mahmoud Khalil detained by US misses son’s birth
- Trump’s advisers have accused pro-Palestinian protesters of promoting anti-Semitism and terrorism, charges the activists deny
Cambodia says Thailand bombs casino hub on border
- The renewed fighting between the Southeast Asian neighbors this month has killed at least 21 people in Thailand and 17 in Cambodia, while displacing around 800,000
PHNOM PENH: Cambodia said Thailand’s military on Thursday bombed the casino town of Poipet, a major crossing between the two nations, as foreign powers pressured them to halt reignited border clashes.
Thai forces “dropped two bombs in the area of Poipet Municipality, Banteay Meanchey Province” at around 11:00 am (0400 GMT) Thursday, the Cambodian defense ministry said in a statement.
Thailand has not yet confirmed any strike on Poipet — a bustling casino hub popular with Thai gamblers.
The renewed fighting between the Southeast Asian neighbors this month has killed at least 21 people in Thailand and 17 in Cambodia, while displacing around 800,000, officials said.
The conflict stems from a territorial dispute over the colonial-era demarcation of their 800-kilometer (500-mile) border and a smattering of ancient temple ruins situated on the frontier.
Each side has blamed the other for instigating the fresh fighting and traded accusations of attacks on civilians.
Thailand said Tuesday that between 5,000 and 6,000 Thai nationals remained stranded in Poipet after Cambodia closed its land border crossings with its neighbor.
Cambodia’s interior ministry said the border closures were a “necessary measure” to reduce risks to civilians amid the ongoing combat, adding that air travel remained an option for those seeking to leave.
At least four casinos in Cambodia have been damaged by Thai strikes, the interior ministry said this week.
- ‘Shuttle-diplomacy’ -
Five days of fighting between Cambodia and Thailand in July killed dozens of people before a truce was brokered by the United States, China and Malaysia, and then broken within months.
US President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly intervened in the long-standing conflict this year, claimed last week that the two countries had agreed to a new ceasefire.
But Bangkok denied any truce had been agreed, and fighting with artillery, tanks, drones and jets has continued daily since a border skirmish earlier this month sparked the latest round of conflict.
China said it was sending its special envoy for Asian affairs to Cambodia and Thailand on Thursday for a “shuttle-diplomacy trip” to help bridge the gaps and “rebuild peace.”
“Through its own way, China has been working actively for deescalation,” Beijing’s foreign ministry said in a statement late Wednesday.
Foreign ministers from ASEAN regional bloc nations are due to meet on Monday in Malaysia for emergency talks aimed at finding a diplomatic solution.
“Our duty is to present the facts but more important is to press upon them that it is imperative for them to secure peace,” Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim told journalists late Wednesday.
“We are appealing to them to immediately stop this frontline offensive and if possible, an immediate ceasefire,” Anwar said at his official residence in Putrajaya, adding that he was “cautiously optimistic” about the talks.
European Commission vice president Kaja Kallas said in a statement that she had spoken with the foreign ministers of Cambodia and Thailand on Wednesday, offering the European Union’s support for ceasefire monitoring with satellite imagery.
“The conflict between Thailand and Cambodia must not be allowed to spiral further. That’s why the ceasefire needs to be immediately restored,” Kallas said.
