Researchers David Collier and Rachel Feldman released a 101-page report on Wednesday challenging the public accounts of Mohsen Mahdawi, a Columbia University graduate student currently facing deportation proceedings. The report, titled "Mohsen Mahdawi: A Timeline of Support for Terrorism," aggregates Arabic-language social media posts, historical archives, and public records, the researchers said.
Mahdawi, a lawful permanent resident originally from the West Bank, became a prominent pro-Palestinian campus activist. He is currently the subject of immigration removal proceedings based on allegations that his campus activism and speech pose adverse foreign policy consequences for the United States, according to official statements.
The report examines what the researchers describe as chronological contradictions in Mahdawi's personal narrative. For years, Mahdawi has recounted a formative childhood event in the Al-Fara'a refugee camp, describing how his best friend Hameida was killed in front of him. According to the report, this account does not align with casualty records from the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights and B'Tselem databases, which documented only one child killed inside the camp during the Second Intifada.
The researchers also highlighted a stated chronological inconsistency: Mahdawi's uncle Thaer was killed on September 12, 2001, according to the report, meaning he could not have comforted Mahdawi at a graveside if the incident occurred after that date. The report claims Mahdawi adjusted his stated age to reconcile this contradiction.
The report documents numerous Arabic-language Facebook posts from before Mahdawi's arrival in the United States in July 2014, during his time as a student leader at Birzeit University. According to the researchers, these posts included statements expressing support for militant organizations and attacks on Israel. The authors questioned how such posts did not affect his visa approval process.
The report also documents what it describes as Mahdawi's family ties to militant organizations. Multiple family members, including Thaer and Amin Abu al-Kamal, Maysara Masharqa, and Youssef Mahdawi, were active in the Al-Aqsa Martyrs' Brigades or Palestinian Islamic Jihad, according to the researchers' review of military records and militant group announcements. Youssef Mahdawi was convicted in connection with a 2003 attack on a London café, the report noted.
