Palestinian Woman Released After Year in Immigration Detention Following Campus Protest

A 33-year-old Palestinian woman from New Jersey was freed Monday after spending a year in a Texas immigration detention facility. Leqaa Kordia was the final person still detained from the Trump administration's crackdown on pro-Palestinian campus activists.

A Palestinian woman who spent an entire year in immigration custody following the Trump administration’s targeting of pro-Palestinian demonstrators walked free Monday after posting a $100,000 bond.

Leqaa Kordia, 33, originally from the West Bank and a New Jersey resident since 2016, had been confined at a Texas immigration facility since March of last year. She was part of approximately 100 individuals taken into custody during demonstrations outside Columbia University in 2024.

“I don’t know what to say. I’m free! I’m free! Finally, after one year,” an elated Kordia declared to media representatives as she exited the detention facility.

Three separate immigration judges had previously granted her bond release. Federal authorities appealed the initial two decisions, but chose not to contest the third ruling, allowing her freedom on Monday.

Medical concerns arose recently when Kordia required a three-day hospital stay after experiencing a seizure when she collapsed and struck her head at the private detention center.

“We are overwhelmed with relief and gratitude at the release of our beloved Leqaa Kordia,” her cousin Hamzah Abushaban expressed through her legal team. “This past year has taken an unimaginable toll on Leqaa and our entire family.”

While expressing excitement about returning home and embracing her mother, Kordia pledged to continue advocating for others remaining in detention.

“There is a lot of injustice in this place,” she stated. “There is a lot of people that shouldn’t be here the first place.”

Kordia explained her participation in the 2024 protests came after Israeli forces killed numerous family members in Gaza, where she maintains strong connections. “My way of helping my family and my people was to go to the streets,” she previously told The Associated Press in October.

Criminal charges from her protest involvement were dropped and sealed. However, the New York City Police Department later shared her arrest information with the Trump administration, claiming it was requested for a money laundering probe.

Immigration officials apprehended Kordia during a routine March 13, 2025 appointment with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in New Jersey. She was immediately detained and transported to Prairieland Detention Center near Dallas.

Her case was part of broader immigration enforcement actions targeting non-citizens who had spoken out against or demonstrated regarding Israel’s Gaza military operations, particularly affecting university students and academics.

Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia University graduate student, faced similar circumstances, spending three months in a Louisiana immigration facility before his release last March.

Unlike campus activists such as Khalil who received public support and official condemnation of their arrests, Kordia’s situation received minimal attention since she wasn’t affiliated with student organizations or advocacy groups.

Government officials allege Kordia violated her visa terms while investigating money transfers she made to Middle Eastern relatives. Kordia maintains these funds were humanitarian assistance for family members affected by the conflict.

An immigration judge determined there was “overwhelming evidence” supporting Kordia’s explanation of the financial transfers.

During Friday’s proceedings, Kordia’s legal representatives highlighted her deteriorating neurological condition during incarceration, which increased her seizure risk. They emphasized her ability to reside with U.S. citizen relatives and argued she posed no flight danger.

Immigration Judge Tara Naslow concurred with the assessment.

“I’ve heard testimony. I’ve seen thousands of pages of evidence presented by the respondent, and very little evidence presented by the government in any of this,” Naslow observed.

Department of Homeland Security attorney Anastasia Norcross maintained government opposition to Kordia’s release regardless of bond amount, though she didn’t indicate whether a third appeal would be filed.