As Palestinian activist, Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil remains in ICE custody in Lousiana, the daughter of Rep Ilhan Omar Isra Hisri has come on the radar for promoting a fundraiser for Khalil. Ilhan Omar is one of the 14 lawmakers who signed on to a memo sent to Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem urging her to release Khalil who stands to be deported by the Donald Trump administration for his involvement in pro-Palestine protests in university campuses last year.
The White House said Khalil sided with the Hamas and distributed Hamas’ propaganda flyers and his involvement was more than just organizing protests.
Ilhan Omar’s daughter Isra Hisri shared the link to the fundraiser on her Instagram story Tuesday — days after Khalil’s arrest when the fundraiser already collected $115,000, according to reports.
Hisri posted another story questioning the silence of the faculty members. “..if you are wondering where our esteemed faculty are…shameful behavior,” she wrote.
“Deport the whole Omar family along with Khalil,” a MAGA supporter posted on X as Republicans have been clamoring for Ilhan Omar’s deportation for some comments she allegedly made about Somalia from where she belongs to.
Ilhan Omar’s daughter Hisri, who studies at Barnard, has been involved in the anti-Israel movement and participated in the protests at Columbia University, which is Barnard’s sister school. She was also an organizer of Columbia University Apartheid Divest alongside Khalil. She was arrested and suspended last year in April after refusing to vacate an illegal encampment on the campus.
Ilhan Omar at the time of her daughter’s protest said she was ‘enormously proud’ that Isra led with courage and compassion. Hisri said despite the suspension, she would not be intimidated.
Khalil asked Columbia for protection a day before arrest, lawyers claim
Khalil’s lawyer Ramzi Kassem said Khalil was in fear for his life and well-being as she was receiving threats. He sent an email to the president of Columbia University the night before he was arrested. “He sent an email to the president of Columbia University the night before he was arrested and detained to basically put the University on notice that he was feeling unprotected by the University, and that he was worried about detention by ICE and doxxing and actions by private actors,” Kassem said.
