A federal appeals court on January 15, 2026, ruled that a lower court lacked the subject-matter jurisdiction to block the detention and deportation proceedings of Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia University student and pro-Palestinian activist—reaffirming the executive branches authority under Article II of the constitution.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit vacated orders by U.S. District Judge Michael E. Farbiarz in New Jersey that had previously enjoined Khalil’s removal on foreign-policy grounds, ordered his release from custody, and directed an immigration judge to vacate her removability findings.
In a per curiam opinion, the appeals court held that while the District Court properly exercised habeas corpus jurisdiction under 28 U.S.C. § 2241 following a case transfer, provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA), specifically 8 U.S.C. § 1252(b)(9), stripped it of subject-matter jurisdiction over claims tied to Khalil’s removal proceedings.
The court found that Khalil’s challenges — including allegations of First Amendment retaliation, due process violations, and arbitrary agency actions — were “inextricably linked” to his ongoing removal case and could only be challenged through a petition for administrative review of the final removal order—not via habeas.
Simplified; The court ruled that the venue was correct when Khalil’s attorney filed a habeas petition in the District Court of New Jersey, but that the District Court did not have the authority to adjudicate the case, nor to demand that the immigration judge reverse her order of removal.
As previously covered by Deported.News, due process in immigration proceedings is an administrative proceeding that falls under the statutory authority of the executive branch, as delegated by Congress in the Immigration and Nationality Act. Thus, the court ruled that a petition challenging removal must be filed with the immigration judge who was assigned Khalil’s case.
Khalil, an Algerian citizen and lawful permanent resident through marriage to a U.S. citizen, was arrested March 8, 2025, in New York City shortly after Secretary of State Marco Rubio determined his presence and pro-Palestinian advocacy — including his role as co-president of Columbia’s Palestine Working Group and Palestinian Student Society — could have “potentially serious adverse foreign policy consequences” under 8 U.S.C. § 1227(a)(4)(C)(i).
However, as immigration laws are a form of contract with the United States government that specifies material misrepresentations as a nullifying act, the government argued that Khalil committed fraud—vitiating said contract. Allegations of fraud included Khalil’s willful omissions and misrepresentations of material facts on his green card application such as failing to disclose prior affiliations with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), employment at the British Embassy’s Syria office in Beirut, and membership in Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD).
Reviewing these facts, the immigration judge found Khalil removable on both the foreign-policy and fraud grounds in June 2025, denied relief including asylum, and ordered removal to Algeria or Syria. While New Jersey judge Farbiarz’s interventions, including the May preliminary injunction and June release order, temporarily halted enforcement, Farbiarz lacked jurisdiction and the authority to intervene.
The Third Circuit has now remanded the case with instructions to dismiss the habeas petition, clearing the path for the Trump administration to re-arrest Khalil and continue deportation efforts. Khalil’s attorneys have indicated plans to seek further review.
Breeauna Sagdal is a policy journalist for Deported News on X @Breeauna9
