Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University protester who was detained by ICE on Saturday, has been moved to a detention facility in Louisiana, according to ICE’s detainee locator system. Khalil was a key part of Columbia students’ protests last year against Israel’s indiscriminate bombardment of Gaza in response to the October 7 attacks. He is a green card holding legal permanent resident of the U.S. and has not been charged with a crime.
The news follows Khalil’s attorney initially being told he was being detained in a New Jersey facility, but after his wife went to visit him, found that Khalil was not there, according to the Associated Press.
The locator system says Khalil is being held in the Jena/LaSalle Detention Facility. It is owned and operated by the Geo Group, a long-time ICE contractor. Previous research found the Jena/LaSalle Detention Facility received the largest number of sexual and physical abuse complaints filed to ICE’s oversight body.
