Mahmoud Halil, a leading figure in the Palestinian support demonstrations at Columbia University in the U.S., has filed a lawsuit to keep the information of the participating students confidential.

According to The New York Times (NYT), Halil took action along with 7 students at Columbia in response to the House Committee’s request for the disciplinary records of students involved in the Palestinian support protests. Halil and the 7 students filed a lawsuit to prevent the information of the students participating in the demonstration from being shared with the House Committee. The students, emphasizing the university’s responsibility to protect student privacy, requested permission from the court to proceed with the case anonymously or using pseudonyms. They stated that the committee would obtain personal information on hundreds of students and academics, and that this information could be used “to harass and threaten individuals.”

STATEMENT FROM THE HOUSE COMMITTEE On the other hand, Representative Tim Walberg, a member of the committee, stated that Halil’s lawsuit had no impact. Walberg said, “Our committee will continue to work to protect Jewish students and prevent antisemitism on our university campuses.” GREEN CARD REVOKED

Mahmoud Halil, a Palestinian activist and graduate student at Columbia University who led protests, was detained on March 3rd while going home with his wife. His attorney Amy Greer stated that despite Halil being a “green card holder” and having an American spouse, he was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials and his green card was revoked. U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, in a message shared on his X account, used the phrase, “We will cancel the visas or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported.” A judge in the U.S. had temporarily blocked the deportation of Mahmoud Halil.