Washington said that Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, who was arrested for participating in student demonstrations denouncing the Israeli genocide in the Gaza Strip, concealed his work with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), according to US media.

The New York Times reported on Sunday that the US administration has expanded its list of charges against Khalil.

The charges included allegations that Khalil concealed his UNRWA membership when applying for permanent residency in the United States.

US authorities also claimed that Khalil concealed his work at the Syrian office of the British Embassy in Beirut, making these allegations "justification" for his deportation, the newspaper reported.

On March 9, US authorities arrested Khalil, who led solidarity protests at Columbia University last year to condemn Tel Aviv's genocide in Gaza.

The arrest came after US President Donald Trump signed an executive order last January on "combating anti-Semitism," which allows for the deportation of students who participate in demonstrations in support of Palestine.

Columbia University, Northwestern University, Portland State University, the Twin Cities University in Minnesota, and the University of California, Berkeley campus were among the universities where demonstrations in support of Palestine began in April 2024 and spread around the world.

Protests in support of Palestine, which began at Columbia University, spread to more than 50 other universities across the country, and police detained more than 3,100 people, most of them students and faculty members.

The university was gripped by a tense atmosphere last week after police intervened to disperse student protests against former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett's visit to the campus. The clashes resulted in the arrest of some demonstrators.

With full American support, Israel has been committing genocide in Gaza since October 7, 2023, leaving more than 163,000 Palestinians dead and wounded, most of them children and women, and more than 14,000 missing.