Mahmoud Khalil lawsuit says Columbia failed to protect pro-Palestinian activists, tell me about this news in (https://apnews.com/article/khalil-palestinian-protests-columbia-lawsuit-222bc1f0c8cd74c19f6bdc76dfd0b0de)

According to the Associated Press report, Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, along with a pro-Palestinian student organization and its president Mohammad Zubairi, filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against Columbia University in New York.Key details of the report include:

• Allegations of Inaction and Retaliation: The lawsuit accuses Columbia University of “deliberate indifference,” alleging the administration failed to protect pro-Palestinian students from harassment and doxing, and instead retaliated against them when they reported mistreatment. The filing claims the university revised disciplinary policies to target criticism of the Israeli government and treated student events as security risks.
• Surveillance and Misinformation: At a news conference announcing the suit, Khalil alleged that Columbia monitored pro-Palestinian students, hired private investigators to track him, and failed to correct public disinformation while he was detained, which intensified peer-on-peer harassment against Arab and Muslim students.
• Background on Khalil: Khalil, a former Columbia graduate student who served as a prominent spokesperson during campus protests over the war in Gaza, was arrested by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) at his campus apartment in March 2025. He spent 104 days in an immigration detention center in Louisiana before a federal judge ordered his release; his deportation proceedings remain active.
• Relief Sought: The lawsuit seeks unspecified monetary damages to be determined at trial, along with a court injunction restoring Khalil’s campus access and reversing the suspension of the student group.
• Columbia University’s Response: Columbia declined to comment directly on the litigation, but stated that it remains committed to creating a safe and welcoming campus environment and taking prompt action against discrimination and harassment.