Palestinian Activist Leqaa Kordia Released After More Than A Year In U.S.

Palestinian Activist Leqaa Kordia Released After More Than a Year in U.S. Immigration Detention Leqaa Kordia, a 33‑year‑old Palestinian woman who had been held by U.S. immigration authorities for over a year following her arrest at a 2024 pro‑Palestinian protest at Columbia University, has been released from detention after an immigration judge approved her bond.

Kordia, who was detained at the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas, walked out of custody on Monday after a federal judge granted her release on a $100,000 bond, marking the third time a judge had ordered her release. Her prolonged detention began in March 2025, when she was apprehended by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials in New Jersey for overstaying her student visa a situation tied to her ongoing attempt to secure legal permanent residency through her U.S.‑citizen mother. Kordia was initially arrested at a pro‑Palestinian demonstration outside Columbia University in April 2024, part of nationwide protests against Israel’s war in Gaza, though those charges were later dropped.

Her case drew national attention as the last remaining individual held under a 2025 crackdown on campus protesters. Earlier in her detention, Kordia suffered from poor conditions and was hospitalized after a seizure, with advocacy groups criticizing her treatment and arguing her rights had been violated.

Support for her release came from civil rights lawyers, human rights organizations, and some U.S. lawmakers, who argued that her continued detention violated constitutional protections, including the First Amendment right to free speech. Kordia was born in the West Bank and later moved to the United States in 2016, residing in New Jersey. Although her initial protest arrest did not lead to criminal charges, federal immigration authorities detained her months later at an ICE office, citing visa overstay issues—a move her legal team said was linked to her political activism. Despite multiple orders by immigration judges for her release, government attorneys had twice appealed the rulings, delaying her freedom. It was only after the government did not challenge the third bond ruling that Kordia was finally freed.

Her ongoing immigration proceedings and asylum pursuit are expected to continue as she now rejoins her family in New Jersey.

Kordia’s release after more than a year in custody highlights ongoing debates over immigration enforcement, free speech rights, and the treatment of political activists in the United States. Her case has become emblematic of broader concerns about civil liberties for noncitizens involved in political protest.