Over a year later, pro-Palestinian protester is released from ICE custody

Leqaa Kordia, who is Palestinian, has been released from an immigration detention center more than a year after she was arrested for overstaying her student visa following her participation in pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University.

A Palestinian woman has been released from an immigration detention center more than a year after she was arrested for overstaying her student visa following her participation in pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University.

Leqaa Kordia, 33, is the last person arrested during those demonstrations to be released from custody. Her lawyers argued that the Trump administration targeted her for protesting military actions in Gaza.

Her visa was terminated in January 2022 for lack of attendance, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

On Friday, an immigration judge ordered that Kordia be released on $100,000 bond. It was the third time the same judge had ruled in her favor. Federal lawyers fought the judge’s previous rulings, keeping her detained despite the order.

In a statement Monday, a DHS spokesperson said Kordia was arrested last March for violations related to her overstaying her student visa. The previous year, the spokesperson added, local law enforcement had arrested her for her involvement in protests at Columbia University.