Pro-Palestinian Arab activist Mahmoud Khalil filed a federal lawsuit against Columbia University on Monday, accusing the school of failing to address harassment targeting him and other members of a pro-Palestinian Arab campus group and retaliating after they raised concerns, The Associated Press reported.
The civil rights lawsuit, filed in federal court in New York City, alleges that Columbia's “deliberate indifference" contributed to multiple group members being doxed and to Khalil's detention by immigration authorities.
Speaking at a news conference announcing the lawsuit, Khalil accused the university of “discrimination aimed at intimidating Palestinian students."
“We are suing because no student, regardless of their background, should go through the hell that Columbia put us through over all these years," he said.
Columbia declined to comment directly on the lawsuit. In a statement quoted by The Associated Press, the university said, “creating a campus environment where every member of our community feels welcome, supported, and safe is fundamental to who we are as a University."
“Columbia is committed to protecting our community from discrimination and harassment, and responding promptly and appropriately when concerns arise," it added.
Khalil, a former Columbia graduate student, became a prominent spokesperson for campus activists protesting Israel's actions in Gaza. He was arrested by US Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents at his campus apartment in March 2025, becoming a central figure in the Trump administration's crackdown on pro-Palestinian demonstrations.
He spent 104 days in an immigration detention facility in Louisiana and missed the birth of his first child before a federal judge in New Jersey ordered his release. His deportation proceedings are still ongoing.
According to the new lawsuit, Columbia “refused to correct disinformation" while Khalil was detained, “allowing a false narrative about his conduct and role to persist and further enabling peer-on-peer harassment of other Palestinian Arab students and students with perceived shared Arab and/or Muslim ancestry."
The lawsuit further alleges that rather than investigate complaints of harassment, Columbia responded by portraying activities organized by the pro-Palestinian Arab group as security threats and changing disciplinary policies in a manner that targeted criticism of the Israeli government.
Khalil also alleged at Monday's news conference that Columbia conducted surveillance of pro-Palestinian Arab students and hired private investigators to monitor him.
The lawsuit accuses Columbia of violating civil rights laws and asks a court to restore Khalil's access to campus and lift the suspension of the pro-Palestinian Arab student group. It also seeks damages “to be determined at trial."
Khalil previously sued Columbia in 2025 in an effort to prevent the university from releasing student records to a congressional committee.
He has also filed a previous lawsuit alleging that the Trump administration had colluded with several pro-Israel groups to prosecute him for his advocacy.