In the United States, Mahmud Halil, a leading figure in the Palestinian support actions at Columbia University, has filed a lawsuit to keep the information of participating students in protests confidential. According to The New York Times (NYT), Halil took action along with seven students at Columbia in response to the House Committee’s request for disciplinary records of students involved in pro-Palestinian demonstrations. Halil and the 7 students filed a lawsuit to prevent the sharing of information of students participating in the Palestinian support protests with the House Committee. The students, emphasizing the university’s obligation to protect student privacy, requested the court to allow them to continue the case anonymously or using pseudonyms. They mentioned that the committee would obtain personal information of hundreds of students and academics, and these details could be “used to harass and threaten individuals.”

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

Mahmud Halil, a graduate student at Columbia University who led protests, was arrested on March 3rd while returning home with his wife. His lawyer, Amy Greer, mentioned that despite Halil being a “permanent resident with a green card” in the US and having an American wife, he was arrested by the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials and his green card was canceled. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio shared a message on his X account stating, “We will revoke visas or green cards of America-based Hamas supporters so they can be deported.” A judge in the US had temporarily blocked Mahmud Halil’s deportation.