A JUDGE IN the southern US state of Louisiana has ordered prominent pro-Palestinian protest leader Mahmoud Khalil to be deported to Algeria or Syria after failing to disclose information on his green card application, according to court documents filed yesterday.

“It is hereby further ordered that Respondent be Removed from the United States to Algeria, or in the alternative to Syria,” Judge Jamee Comans wrote in a court filing.

The order dated 12 September by the immigration judge asserted the lack of full disclosure on Khalil’s green card application “was not an oversight by an uninformed, uneducated applicant…rather, this Court finds that Respondent wilfully misrepresented material fact(s).”

Khalil, in a statement to the American Civil Liberties Union, said in response to the order: “It is no surprise that the Trump administration continues to retaliate against me for my exercise of free speech.”

“Their latest attempt, through a kangaroo immigration court, exposes their true colors once again.”

Khalil, a legal permanent resident in the United States who is married to a US citizen and has a US-born son, was detained by immigration for three months beginning in March and faced potential deportation.

A former Columbia University student who was one of the most visible leaders of nationwide pro-Palestinian campus protests, he was released from custody in June, but faced continued threats of deportation from federal authorities.