After a year in immigration detention, Leqaa Kordia, a Palestinian woman, is finally free. She was the last person held from the Trump administration's 2025 crackdown on pro-Palestinian activism at colleges.
Kordia, 33, from the West Bank, has lived in New Jersey since 2016. She spent a year in a U.S. immigration detention center in Texas. Her detention was partly because she joined a protest outside Columbia University in 2024.
"I'm free! I'm free! Finally, after one year," Kordia told reporters, smiling as she left the center. That's a pretty wild journey to freedom.
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Start Your News DetoxA Long Road to Release
An immigration judge actually ordered Kordia's release on bond three separate times. The government fought the first two rulings. But Kordia was ultimately freed on a $100,000 bond after the government didn't challenge the third decision. Seriously, three times!
Kordia says she can't wait to hug her mother. She also plans to keep fighting for others still held at the detention center. "There is a lot of injustice in this place," she noted, which makes her next steps even more powerful.
She was one of several people arrested last year. The Trump administration used immigration powers against non-citizens who spoke out against Israel's military actions in Gaza. Many targeted were students and scholars at American universities. For example, Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia graduate student, was held for three months. Rümeysa Öztürk, a Tufts student, was detained for six weeks. Some even left the U.S. after their visas were pulled.
Kordia's case flew under the radar a bit more because she wasn't a student or part of a big support group. But her story is just as important.
The Protest and Arrest
Kordia explained she joined the 2024 demonstration outside Columbia University after many of her relatives in Gaza were killed. She was one of about 100 people arrested by city police at that protest. The charges against her were later dropped.
Information about her arrest was passed to the Trump administration by the New York City Police Department. The NYPD said they needed the records for a money laundering investigation. That's a twist you don't hear every day.
Kordia was arrested on March 13, 2025, during a routine check-in with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in New Jersey. She was immediately detained and flown all the way to Prairieland Detention Center in Texas. Federal officials accused Kordia of overstaying her visa. They also looked into payments she sent to relatives in the Middle East. Kordia said the money was to help family members affected by the war.
Tricia McLaughlin, a Department of Homeland Security spokesperson, had criticized Kordia for "providing financial support to individuals living in nations hostile to the U.S." The department also stated Monday night, "Leqaa Kordia is in the country illegally after violating the terms of her visa." They added that the Trump administration "will continue to fight for the arrest, detention, and removal of aliens who have no right to be in this country." However, an immigration judge found "overwhelming evidence" that Kordia was telling the truth about those payments. Big win for Kordia there.
Health Worries and a Judge's Decision
Just recently, Kordia was hospitalized for three days after having a seizure. She had fainted and hit her head at the detention facility. Her lawyers argued that her neurological condition was getting worse in custody and that she was at high risk for another seizure. They also pointed out she could stay with U.S. citizen family and wasn't a flight risk.
Immigration Judge Tara Naslow agreed. She noted "overwhelming evidence" from Kordia's side and "very little evidence presented by the government." It seems the facts were clearly on Kordia's side in the end.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani even asked for Kordia's release when he met with President Donald Trump last month. He expressed gratitude for her release after "more than a year in detention for speaking up for Palestinian rights." It's a powerful reminder that speaking out can sometimes come with a heavy price, but freedom can still win.
