The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today welcomed a federal court’s order to release of Mohsen Mahdawi, a permanent United States resident and green card holder from the illegally-occupied West Bank, who was arrested by immigration authorities in Vermont.
CAIR also reiterated its call for the administration to release Mahmoud Khalil and Rumeysa Ozturk.
Washington, D.C., based CAIR had previously condemned Mahdawi’s abduction by ICE agents. His attorneys say the Trump administration is trying to deport Mahdawi because of his anti-genocide activism at Columbia University.
In a statement, CAIR said:
“We welcome the release of Mohsen Mahdawi as an important victory in the struggle for not only his freedom, but also in the broader struggle to protect the First Amendment. Every person in America, including immigrants, has a constitutional right to free speech. The Trump administration must stop abducting and disappearing college students because they dared to criticize U.S. support for the Israeli government’s war crimes in Gaza.”
Also this month, CAIR demanded that the Trump administration provide proper medical care for Tufts University graduate student Rumeysa Ozturk who was snatched from the street by masked ICE agents apparently because she co-wrote an editorial calling for her school to divest from the Israeli government over its genocide in Gaza.
In March, CAIR’s New York chapter (CAIR-NY), CAIR’s national office and the law firm of Dratel & Lewis announced the filing of a federal lawsuit on behalf of Columbia University students against Columbia University and the Committee on Education and Workforce, U.S. House of Representatives regarding the Congressional request to disclose thousands of student records.
The California chapter of CAIR, along with the California Immigrant Policy Center (CIPC), and more than 120 organizations representing community organizers, labor unions, social and legal service providers, faith leaders, and immigration and civil rights organizations, announced a joint letter to more than 50 California legislators urging them to take action regarding the unjust arrests of Columbia anti-genocide activists Mahmoud Khalil and Yunseo Chung.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com