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DALLAS, TX – Today, Leqaa Kordia—a 32-year-old Palestinian woman from the West Bank and a resident of New Jersey—will seek federal court protection in securing her immediate release from retaliatory immigrant detention. 

Ms. Kordia has been confined at the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas, more than 1,500 miles away from her family and community in New Jersey—because she attended a Palestinian rights protest and sent money to her family in Palestine. Despite a grant of release on bond by an immigration judge, Ms. Kordia has been unlawfully confined by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (“ICE”) for over 85 days, in which she has suffered significant religious liberty violations—denial of the ability to pray and of halal meals. This case is a chilling example of how the current administration weaponizes immigration enforcement to suppress Palestinian voices and advocacy in support of Palestinian lives.

By invoking a rarely-used provision to automatically prevent her release, the U.S. government claims it has unfettered power and discretion to confine Ms. Kordia despite its textbook constitutional violations of her protected speech. Today’s hearing will be the first hearing Ms. Kordia has received in which she can present constitutional claims for her immediate release based on her rights to free speech and due process. 

WHEN: Thursday, June 5, 2025 at 10 a.m CT.

WHERE:  U.S. District Court Northern District of Texas –  1100 Commerce St. Dallas, TX 75242.The hearing can also be accessed via Youtube. Attendees will be expected to follow courtroom etiquette.

WHO: Lawyers from the Texas Civil Rights Project, Southern Poverty Law Center, Muslim Advocates, the CLEAR Project, and Waters Kraus Paul & Siegel will speak to the press at Civic Garden – 1014 Main St, Dallas TX, 75202 across the street from the courthouse.

Background:

Ms. Kordia is  represented by Muslim Advocates, the CLEAR project, the Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC), the Texas Civil Rights Project (TCRP) and Waters Kraus Paul & Siegel. On May 5, 2025, Ms. Kordia’s legal team filed a motion for a preliminary injunction with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, requesting an expedited hearing to determine Ms. Kordia’s immediate release from ICE custody following the filing of her habeas corpus petition. Today, Ms. Kordia’s legal team will argue that her continued confinement by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) is punitive and violates her constitutional rights to free speech and due process—urging the court to order her immediate release, given irreparable harm she is experiencing, including religious deprivations in ICE custody. Ms. Kordia was recently detained by ICE while fasting for Ramadan and spent Eid isolated in detention, instead of with her family and community. Now, as another Eid approaches a day after her court hearing, Ms. Kordia remains confined. 

Ms. Kordia’s unlawful and retaliatory confinement is linked to the government’s recent crackdown on Palestinian rights activism. Just as was done with Mahmoud Khalil, Rümeysa Öztürk, and other non-citizens in retaliation for their support of Palestinian rights, the government has targeted and isolated Ms. Kordia from her family and community. Today marks a critical day for determining Ms. Kordia’s future liberty–and for all people exercising their right to protest and free speech. 

Motion for Preliminary Injunction accessible here

Petition for Writ of Habeas Corpus accessible here.