Gaza First Amendment Alert

June 24: The US Formally Enters Israel’s War, Mahmoud Khalil Released on Bail

Trump At War

On the evening of Saturday June 21, Donald Trump announced via social media the U.S. dropped bombs on three nuclear sites in Iran. Later that evening, he gave a televised address, describing the strikes as “massive, precision strikes,” stating they “were a spectacular military success.” Trump also said, “I want to thank and congratulate Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu. We worked as a team like perhaps no team has ever worked before, and we’ve gone a long way to erasing this horrible threat to Israel.”

Trump’s bombing of Iran was carried out without Congressional authorization, making it unconstitutional and illegal under the War Powers Act. It came a week after Israel launched an unprovoked attack on Iran, in violation of the United Nations Charter. Iran unsurprisingly responded with retaliatory strikes, further adding to the grim human toll of this unnecessary war. Israel’s bombardment campaign has included assassinations of civilian nuclear scientists and the lead negotiator in their talks with the U.S. In the first days of its new war, Israel deliberately targeted Iranian state television. All of these actions are war crimes under international law.

On Saturday, Trump chose to join Netanyahu’s war directly.

Even before Trump’s unconstitutional bombing, Israel’s latest act of aggression sent off a flurry of concern in Washington about what Trump might do. In the Senate, Tim Kaine (D-VA), introduced a War Powers Resolution. A companion resolution was introduced in the House by Representatives Thomas Massie (R-KY) and Ro Khana (D-CA). The bipartisan resolution currently has 57 co-sponsors. Punchbowl News is reporting that Representatives Greg Meeks (D-NY), Jim Himes (D-CT), and Adam Smith (D-WA) are drafting a rival War Powers Resolution. The three Democrats are the ranking members of the Armed Service, Intelligence, and Foreign Affairs Committees, respectively. Their War Powers Resolution allows Trump to take military against Iran to defend an “ally or partner” from imminent attack.

In the Senate, Bernie Sanders, a self-described democratic socialist independent senator from Vermont, who caucuses with the Democrats and twice sought their presidential nomination, reintroduced the No War With Iran Act. The bill would cut off funding for U.S. military action against Iran. It has six cosponsors. War Powers Resolutions are privileged, meaning they must be brought to the floor for a vote. That is not true of Sen. Sanders' bill.

Following Trump’s attack, lawmakers in both parties have correctly labeled the bombing as unconstitutional. Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY) responded to Trump’s bombing by stating “this is not Constitutional.” Rep. Marjorie Talyore Greene (R-GA), a key supporter of Trump’s, stated, “This is not our fight. Peace is the answer.” Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) and Sean Casten (D-IL) have called for impeachment. Jim Himes (D-CT), the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, has called Trump’s actions “a clear violation of the Constitution,” and Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) has called for an immediate vote on the Iran War Powers Resolution, stating he will vote for it. Conversely, Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY), the leader of the Democratic caucus in the House, when asked about the War Powers resolution responded, “Haven't taken a look at it."

One of the biggest media stories in the run-up to Trump’s illegal bombing was how a potential war with Iran would divide his “MAGA” movement. MAGA stalwarts Tucker Carlson, Steven Bannon, and Marjorie Taylor Green had all spoken out against a potential strike. Before the strikes, polls showed a majority of Americans opposed to military action, including Republicans.

Yet, while a majority of Americans disapprove of Trump’s handling of Iran in a poll after the strikes, a majority of Republicans support it. Republican leadership in the Congress has made clear they back Trump. To date, only one Republican, Thomas Massie, has co-sponsored an Iran War Powers Resolution. Trump has attacked Massie viciously and made clear his intent to primary him. Rep. Greene, in spite of her outspoken criticism of a war with Iran, announced she would vote against the War Powers Resolutions, accusing Massie not being “MAGA.”

Republican Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA), per Politico, is exploring ways to prevent a vote on Iran War Powers resolutions by stripping such resolutions of their privileged status.

UPDATE: As we were preparing the Gaza First Amendment Alert for publication, news of a ceasefire came through. So far, the ceasefire has been very fragile: Trump has accused both Israel and Iran of violating it. It is not clear if it will last or what it will mean for Congressional efforts to invoke the War Powers Act. Rep. Massie has indicated he is willing to hold off on a vote on the War Powers Resolution. However, the following day, The Nation published an op-ed by Rep. Khanna calling for Congress to vote immediately.

After Legal Whiplash, Mahmoud Khalil Is Free

On Friday June 20, U.S. District Judge Michael E. Farbiarz granted Mahmoud Khalil bail, after 104 days in confinement. Khalil was released from immigration detention later that day. The following day, he arrived at Newark Airport, where Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) joined Khalil, now reunited with his family, for a press conference.

Khalil’s prolonged detention was an outlier amongst similarly situated individuals. In other cases where the Trump administration sought to detain noncitizens for their speech in support of Palestine, federal judges quickly granted bail pending a final decision on their constitutional challenges. Khalil’s disparate treatment was made all the more stunning when on June 11 Judge Farbiarz granted a preliminary injunction saying Khalil could not be detained on the basis of Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s determination that Khalil’s presence in the U.S. poses consequences for U.S. foreign policy.

After making the ruling, Farbiarz put in a two-day stay, giving the government a chance to appeal. Instead of seeking to keep Khalil detained while they appeal, the Trump administration simply announced Khalil was being detained not under the Rubio determination, but a second charge that he misled the government on his immigration application. Stunningly, the judge agreed with the government and kept Khalil behind bars.

After this legal whiplash, Khalil asked again to be granted bail or moved closer to home. At this point Farbiarz finally ruled on his bail application, setting him free. Both Khalil’s immigration proceeding and federal habeas case continue.

Global Comparisons: UK Seeks to Ban Pro-Palestine Group under Anti-Terrorism Law

Last Friday, two members of the UK-based pro-Palestine direct action group Palestine Action broke into a Royal Air Force (RAF) airbase and spray-painted two war planes. According to the Guardian, “Palestine Action said the intruders used repurposed fire extinguishers to spray red paint into the turbines of the two planes and attacked them with crowbars. Paint, symbolizing bloodshed, was also sprayed on the runway, and a Palestinian flag was left at the scene…”

Palestine Action, established in 2020 when activists broke into and spray-painted the interior of the London headquarters of Israeli weapons manufacturer Elbit Systems, typically targets defense contractors and other companies which materially support Israel’s genocide in Gaza.

Just three days after the RAF break-in, the BBC reported that UK Home Secretary Yvette Cooper plans to proscribe Palestine Action under the UK’s Terrorism Act of 2000, effectively labeling the group a terrorist organization. The move would make it illegal to be a member of, invite support for, or even “express an opinion or belief that is supportive of” Palestine Action.

Cooper announced it was “absolutely the correct decision” to ban the group, despite UK military sources telling the Guardian that “no planned flights or operations were affected.”

The Terrorism Act grants the Home Secretary the authority to proscribe certain organizations he or she believes commits, supports, or otherwise engages in terrorism. The 81 groups currently on the proscribed list are almost entirely foreign-based militant groups (such as Hezbollah, and Hamas).

Chip Gibbons is the editor of the Gaza First Amendment Alert. Nathan Fuller contributed reporting, research, and analysis.