The Yemeni University Student Forum strongly condemns the arbitrary arrest and planned deportation of Palestinian student Mahmoud Khalil, a resident of the United States, due to his humanitarian stance and peaceful participation in protests supporting the Palestinian cause and his clear rejection of the crimes committed by the Israeli occupation against his people.
In an official statement, the Forum described the unjustified detention of Khalil by US immigration authorities, under fabricated political pretexts, as a flagrant violation of human and academic rights, as well as an attack on peaceful student activism. The move was seen as an attempt to suppress free speech, silence voices demanding justice, and undermine the right to peaceful protest, which is protected under international law and human rights conventions.
The Forum further noted that the false accusations against the student—especially the claim that he poses a threat to “US national security”—are nothing more than a cover for violating his constitutional rights to expression and protest.
“This incident reflects the US government’s clear bias toward the Israeli occupation, and a desperate attempt to silence free voices on global campuses that are speaking out against crimes committed against Palestinian civilians, especially amid the shameful international complicity in the suffering of the Palestinian people, according to the statement.
The statement declared full solidarity with Mahmoud Khalil, who has continued his education and peaceful activism despite harsh conditions. His courage in exposing Israeli crimes and defending his people’s cause was praised as an example of dignity and resistance.
It also condemned the complicity of Columbia University, which facilitated this violation by revoking Khalil’s university ID—an act described as a clear betrayal of the role of academic institutions as beacons of thought and social justice.
The statement called on human rights organizations, humanitarian institutions, and Arab and international student unions to take urgent action and apply pressure to end these unjust practices and to oppose the policies of repression and intimidation faced by pro-Palestine students abroad.
“Palestine is being slaughtered in your silence. The occupation continues its crimes in the absence of your voices. Let us form a united academic front against injustice and teach the world that freedom is not a slogan, but a daily act of resistance, ” the statement read.
The Forum concluded by reaffirming its unwavering commitment to the just causes of the nation, especially the cause of Palestine, and called for organizing solidarity sit-ins and student marches within universities to emphasize that Palestine is the cause of all free people.
