Protesters Occupy Trump Tower Lobby, Demand Release of Anti-Israel Activist Mahmoud Khalil
On Thursday, several dozen protesters gathered in the lobby of Trump Tower on Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue, calling for the release of Mahmoud Khalil, an anti-Israel activist detained over the weekend. Many of the demonstrators, dressed in red, held signs with messages like "Free Mahmoud, Free Palestine" and "Fight Nazis Not Students." They also chanted the slogan "Free, free Palestine."
The protest took place in the same lobby where former President Donald Trump launched his 2016 presidential campaign. The New York Police Department (NYPD) eventually intervened, detaining multiple protesters and removing them from the building in zip ties.
Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University graduate student, was arrested by ICE agents at his university-owned apartment on the Upper West Side on Saturday. According to his attorneys, agents informed him that his green card and student visa were being revoked. Khalil was a prominent figure in last year’s anti-Israel protests at Columbia University.
The protest was organized in part by the group Jewish Voice for Peace, which describes its mission as mobilizing Jews "toward Palestinian liberation and Judaism beyond Zionism." In a statement, the group said, "As Jews, we are taking over the Trump Tower to register our mass refusal. We will not stand by as this fascist regime attempts to criminalize Palestinians and all those calling for an end to the Israeli government’s US-funded genocide of the Palestinian people. And we will never stop fighting for a free Palestine. If you come for one, you face us all. Free Mahmoud, free Palestine!"
Khalil, a Palestinian raised in Syria and a permanent U.S. resident, is married to an American citizen who is eight months pregnant. He is currently being held in Louisiana after a federal judge blocked the Trump administration’s efforts to deport him before his case is heard.
Protests have erupted across Manhattan throughout the week following Khalil’s detention. His supporters argue that he is being targeted for exercising his free speech and advocating for Palestine. Meanwhile, the Trump administration has labeled him a national security risk, accusing him of distributing pro-Hamas propaganda on campus.
The demonstration on Thursday took place at one of President Trump’s most iconic properties. The 58-story Trump Tower, developed in the early 1980s, serves as the headquarters for the Trump Organization and houses luxury condominiums, office spaces, retail establishments, and a penthouse residence belonging to the former president.
This is a developing story and will be updated.
Michael Dorgan is a writer for Fox News Digital and Fox Business. You can send tips to [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @M_Dorgan.
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