ALVARADO, Texas — Leqaa Kordia, a 33-year-old Palestinian woman long resident in New Jersey, was released Monday after spending a year in U.S. immigration custody following the Trump administration’s 2025 enforcement campaign targeting pro-Palestinian campus activism.
Kordia, who has lived in New Jersey since 2016, was taken into custody in Texas after reporting to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement in New Jersey on March 13, 2025. Authorities tied part of the case to her participation in a 2024 protest outside Columbia University, a demonstration she said she joined after relatives in Gaza were killed during the war.
She left the Prairieland Detention Center, south of Dallas, jubilant. “I don’t know what to say. I’m free! I’m free! Finally, after one year,” she told reporters, saying she was eager to hug her mother and vowing to continue speaking out for others still detained. “There is a lot of injustice in this place,” she added.
An immigration judge ordered Kordia released on bond three times; federal prosecutors appealed the first two rulings but declined to challenge the third. She was freed on a $100,000 bond.
Federal officials accused Kordia of overstaying her visa and scrutinized money she sent to relatives in the Middle East. Kordia said the transfers were to help family members suffering during the war, and an immigration judge found “overwhelming evidence” that she was truthful about the payments.
The Department of Homeland Security has previously criticized Kordia for allegedly “providing financial support to individuals living in nations hostile to the U.S.” In a statement Monday night the department reiterated that she violated the terms of her visa and said the administration would continue to enforce immigration laws.
Kordia’s arrest and yearlong detention attracted less public attention than some other cases because she was not affiliated with a university group that might have rallied support. Authorities detained roughly 100 people at the Columbia protest; charges against Kordia related to that demonstration were later dismissed and sealed. She has said New York Police Department records about her arrest were shared with the Trump administration after police were told the files were needed for a money‑laundering probe.
Other individuals caught up in the broader enforcement campaign included Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia graduate student held three months in Louisiana before release, and Rümeysa Öztürk, a Tufts student detained for six weeks. One Columbia doctoral student left the U.S. after her visa was revoked and immigration agents visited her apartment.
Kordia was hospitalized for three days after a seizure that followed a fainting episode in detention. Her lawyers told a hearing her neurological condition worsened while in custody, increasing her seizure risk; they also said she could live with U.S. citizen family members and did not pose a flight risk. Immigration Judge Tara Naslow cited extensive evidence presented by Kordia and limited evidence from the government in ordering her release.
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, who said he raised Kordia’s case with President Trump last month, welcomed the release. “I am grateful that Leqaa has been released this evening from ICE custody after more than a year in detention for speaking up for Palestinian rights,” Mamdani posted on X.