An outspoken critic of the Israel-Hamas war was arrested in Vermont. The state’s Congressional delegation is condemning the arrest.
Columbia University student Mohsen Mahdawi of White River Junction, Vermont entered an immigration office in Colchester to complete the final step in his citizenship process on Monday. But plain-clothed and armed individuals arrested and removed him in handcuffs.
Vermont state Senator Becca White, a Windsor Democrat, had accompanied Mahdawi for his citizenship interview. She posted video of his arrest.
“He was kidnapped. This is a constituent. This is a great person. Men in black trucks, with masks and hoods, showed up and picked up Mohsen. There was no badge numbers, no ID’s given,” White reported.
MyNBC5 reports that US District Court Judge William Sessions ordered Mahdawi not be taken out of the country or the state pending further action by the court.
A release from Senator Bernie Sanders, an Independent, Senator Peter Welch and Congresswoman Becca Balint, both Democrats, called his arrest “immoral, inhumane and illegal.” They note that Mahdawi is a legal resident and “must be afforded due process under the law and immediately released from detention.”
