Third Circuit temporarily blocks ICE re-detention of Mahmoud Khalil

On May 26, 2026, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit granted a temporary stay that bars Immigration and Customs Enforcement from re-detaining Mahmoud Khalil while his legal team prepares to petition the Supreme Court for review. Khalil, a 31-year-old Columbia University graduate, green-card holder, and prominent pro-Palestinian campus organizer, was arrested by federal agents in New York City in March 2025 and held by ICE in Louisiana for roughly 104 days before a lower court ordered his release. The stay forestalls the administration's renewed attempt to detain him, which had been opened after a May 22 ruling in the case.

The detention rested on a determination by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, under a rarely invoked foreign-policy provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act, that Khalil's pro-Palestinian advocacy compromised a compelling U.S. foreign-policy interest in combating antisemitism — even though the government acknowledged his activities were otherwise lawful. Khalil's lawyers, including the ACLU and the Center for Constitutional Rights, argue the case is an attempt to use immigration detention to punish and chill constitutionally protected speech. On May 22, the Third Circuit had denied rehearing en banc in a split 6-5 decision, prompting the legal team to announce it would seek Supreme Court review and an immediate stay of the mandate.

Tuesday's temporary block preserves Khalil's liberty pending Supreme Court review but does not resolve the underlying question of whether the government may detain and deport a lawful permanent resident based on the content of his political speech. Khalil's counsel has framed the dispute as a test of whether federal courts can intervene when the government exploits the immigration system to retaliate against protected expression, warning that if the administration can target Khalil for his speech, it can target anyone whose views it opposes.