Palestinian woman released from US immigration detention center after more than a year

WASHINGTON

A Palestinian woman who took part in a pro-Palestinian protest at Columbia University in 2024 was released Monday from a US federal immigration detention center.

Leqaa Kordia, 33, who was detained last March in New Jersey due to alleged visa violations, was the last Columbia University protester still in immigration confinement. Though not a student, she participated in protests after Israel killed more than 100 of her family members in the Gaza Strip.

She was freed from the detention center in the state of Texas on a $100,000 bond after a year in custody.

“I don’t know what to say. I’m free! I’m free! Finally, after one year,” Kordia was quoted as saying by local media.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani hailed the release of Kordia after more than a year in detention "for speaking up for Palestinian rights."

"In my meeting with President (Donald) Trump last month, we discussed ICE’s actions at Columbia University. I asked that the federal government release Leqaa Kordia and drop the cases against four others," Zohran said on US social media company X.