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(NEW YORK) — Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil called himself a “political prisoner” in a new letter dictated from the Louisiana detention center where he remains held following his arrest on Columbia University’s campus.

“I am writing to you from a detention facility in Louisiana where I wake to cold mornings and spend long days bearing witness to the quiet injustices underway against a great many people precluded from the protections of the law,” Khalil stated in the letter, which was dictated over the phone to his family and obtained by ABC News from his legal team on Tuesday.

Khalil, a leader of the encampment protests at Columbia last spring, was detained on March 8. He was taken from his student apartment building to 26 Federal Plaza in lower Manhattan, and then to an immigration detention facility in Elizabeth, New Jersey, according to his legal team.

Officials from President Donald Trump’s administration have said Khalil was detained for his purported support of Hamas — a claim his legal team has rejected.

In his letter, Khalil recounted the night of his arrest, which occurred while he returned to his residence on Columbia’s campus with his wife, Noor Abdalla, an American citizen who is eight months pregnant.

“Before I knew what was happening, agents handcuffed and forced me into an unmarked car,” he stated. “At that moment, my only concern was for Noor’s safety. I had no idea if she would be taken too, since the agents had threatened to arrest her for not leaving my side.”

Khalil said he did not know why he was arrested or he faced “immediate deportation.” He claimed the Trump administration is “targeting me as part of a broader strategy to suppress dissent.”

“My arrest was a direct consequence of exercising my right to free speech as I advocated for a free Palestine and an end to the genocide in Gaza, which resumed in full force Monday night,” he stated.

Khalil said his detention “is a testament to the strength of the student movement in shifting public opinion toward Palestinian liberation.”

“Students have long been at the forefront of change — leading the charge against the Vietnam War, standing on the frontlines of the civil rights movement, and driving the struggle against apartheid in South Africa,” he stated. “Today, too, even if the public has yet to fully grasp it, it is students who steer us toward truth and justice.”

He called on students, as well as advocates and elected officials, to continue to “defend the right to protest” in support of Palestinians.

“At stake are not just our voices, but the fundamental civil liberties of all,” he stated.

In a recent court filing, Khalil’s attorneys ask for his return to New York from Louisiana, where he is being held pending an appearance in front of an immigration judge later this month.

His attorneys had previously asked for his immediate release in a separate filing.

Khalil said he hopes to be able to see the birth of his child, stating in his letter, “Knowing fully that this moment transcends my individual circumstances, I hope nonetheless to be free to witness the birth of my first-born child.”

Khalil’s lawyers said that during his detainment, plain-clothed Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents said his student visa had been revoked — even though Khalil is in the U.S. on a green card. He has not been charged with a crime.

A federal judge has blocked Khalil’s removal from the U.S. while weighing a petition challenging his arrest.

He is set to appear before an immigration judge on March 27.

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(NEW YORK) — Butterfly populations have dropped by 22% across 554 recorded species in the United States, according to a new study in the journal Science.

“Our national-scale findings paint the most complete — and concerning — picture of the status of butterflies across the country in the early 21st century,” the study said.

The study, titled “Rapid butterfly declines across the United States during the 21st century,” counted 12.6 million butterflies, analyzed 76,957 surveys and partnered with 35 monitoring programs to examine buttery population trends from 2000 to 2020.

Total butterfly abundance decreased across the U.S. by 1.3% annually, leading to a cumulative 22% decline, the study said.

Approximately 107 butterfly species declined by more than 50% in the last 20 years, whereas only 3% increased, the study said. But, that actually is not a shock to researchers, since the declines are common across species, whereas increases are rare, the study said.

“Over the two-decade study period, 33% of individual butterfly species showed significantly declining trends in abundance,” the study said.

The dip in butterfly population was seen across the country, but the Southwest was hit the hardest, which is “consistent with other findings that butterflies are disproportionately declining in arid and hot climates,” the study said.

The reason for this significant drop in butterfly populations is due to several factors, one being rising temperatures and changing climates, according to the study.

“With climate change, butterfly species in North America may find the southern limits of their ranges becoming too warm while the northern limits of their range become more hospitable,” the study said.

Other threats to this insect include habitat loss and pesticide use, the study said.

Researchers said there is a potential to increase the butterfly population through “habitat restoration, species-specific interventions and reducing pesticide use.”

Overall, researchers said this population study serves as an “urgent need to protect butterflies from further losses.”

“Expansive efforts in conservation planning and action for insects could prevent widespread future losses and create and maintain the environments in which butterflies and other at-risk species can thrive,” the study said.

Monarch butterflies, for instance, are one example of a thriving species.

The population of monarch butterflies nearly doubled in population in 2024-25 versus 2023-24, according to a survey released Thursday by the World Wildlife Fund in Mexico and Mexico’s National Commission of Protected Natural Areas. However, the population is still significantly below the long-term average.

This year, monarchs covered 4.42 acres, up from 2.22 acres the year before, the survey said. This increase in monarchs is directly related to improved weather conditions in 2024, but “climatic variations” in the insect’s breeding areas of Canada and the U.S. as well as insecticide pose a looming threat for the winged creature.

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(SOUTH TEXAS, Texas) — President Donald Trump has threatened mass deportations of immigrants, potentially expanding the “expedited removal” program to conduct raids in neighborhoods and workplaces. This program would allow for the quick deportation of individuals who entered the U.S. without proper documentation and have been here for less than two years.

Trump has pledged to tighten immigration laws and roll back Biden-era policies that he believes have encouraged a rise in undocumented immigration.

On Monday, Trump signed executive orders enhancing operations of the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, in sensitive areas, expanding expedited deportations for undocumented immigrants, and aiming to end birthright citizenship.

Educators and organizers are grappling with what this means for their communities, and schools are determining the best way to support students and families.

ABC News visited a school in South Texas to meet with students and faculty preparing for the potential impacts of President Trump’s immigration policies.

While in South Texas, a student named Maria, a high school junior, shared with ABC News that she came to America from Mexico on a special visa last fall. Born and raised in Mexico, the 15-year-old lives with her grandmother, who is her legal guardian, in South Texas.

“It’s an honor for me to study here,” Maria said. “And my parents, more than anything, they did it in search of something better for me and my future…to have more opportunities and be able to speak a second language.”

When Maria first arrived, she knew very little English and was placed in a special set of classes to help integrate her into the Texas public school system.

She expressed that she misses her family in Mexico but wants to become a Spanish teacher. She must stay in America to do that, but with Trump’s plan, her goals may be cut short.

“We found out through TikTok, later on Instagram or things like that,” Maria said. “And just like in anything else, there are people who find ways to make the news entertaining…even if it’s something bad. We try to focus on the positive to drown out the negative.”

In 1982, the Supreme Court ruled that all children, regardless of immigration status, can access public education.

While students like Maria are here legally on unique accommodation, there is growing concern about the potential impact an immigration crackdown could have on educational institutions.

The boundary lines for Maria’s school district run along the U.S.-Mexico border. The debate over immigration is finding its way into the classroom, as administrators in Southern Texas believe many of their students come from mixed-status families — some in the household have documentation allowing them to legally reside in the U.S., while others do not.

“When you come to our school district, you will be asked the name, of course, and some type of identification of your child and what can we do to service your child? Our business will never be to ask ‘what is your status in this nation?'” Norma Garcia, director of multi-language at Harlingen Consolidated Independent Schools, said.

District leaders are enhancing mental health support for students and organizing informative sessions for families. These sessions will connect families with experts, such as immigration attorneys and local border patrol agents, to help address their questions and concerns.

However, not all school districts share the same outrage. In Oklahoma, the Department of Education Superintendent Ryan Walters supports the incoming administration’s push for more decisive immigration action.

He claims that the influx of non-English-speaking students has strained the education system. As a solution, he proposes a rule requiring schools to collect information about a student’s or their parent’s immigration status and then share that information with federal authorities.

“Right now, our schools are being required by the federal government to educate all those children of illegal immigrants and never ask them if they’re here legally, never ask them where they’re from,” Walters told ABC. “Never collect any of this information. And so what happens is, is we have situations where one district, we had over 100 students a week that came in in the middle of the school year that we believe are illegal immigrants.”

Oklahoma is suing the former Biden administration and federal agencies for millions of dollars to recover those alleged costs. So far, no other states have joined this newly filed lawsuit.

“We’ve got to do what’s best for the American people, the American taxpayer, and shut down the border, send illegal immigrants back home,” Walters said. “And the best way for us to do that right now is to work with the Trump administration, get them the information they need.”

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