CBS News reported that according to Khalil's attorney, during the arrest, authorities claimed to be acting on a State Department order to revoke his student visa. His attorney purportedly informed them that "Khalil, who graduated in December, was in the US as a permanent resident with a green card, the agent said they were revoking that too."

Jewish Voice for Peace organized a protest that occupied the lobby of Trump Tower in Manhattan Thursday. Demonstrators called for the release of Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian Columbia graduate who organized pro-Palestine protests on the university's campus last year.