Anti-Israel activist Mahmoud Khalil said that his immigration detention "felt like kidnapping" in his first interview since being released.

"All the ‘Know Your Rights’ information and fliers I read and familiarized myself with were useless," Khalil told the New York Times in an article published Sunday. "There are no rights in such situations." 

"It felt like kidnapping," he added.

Khalil, a Columbia University graduate student, was released on bail from an immigration detention center on Friday following an order by U.S. District Judge Michael Farbiarz, who said it was "highly, highly unusual" to keep a legal U.S. resident in custody who doesn’t have accusations of violent offenses or that he's a possible flight risk. 

NEWLY RELEASED MAHMOUD KHALIL SPOTTED BACK AT ANTI-ISRAEL PROTEST AT COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

In March, Khalil was arrested at Columbia over his anti-Israel activism on campus, and an immigration judge ruled he could be removed from the country based on a memo from Secretary of State Marco Rubio that said his campus protests were not aligned with U.S. foreign policy interests.

The Department of Homeland Security has also said that Khalil purposely did not reveal that he was employed with the Syrian office in the British Embassy in Beirut when he applied for permanent U.S. residency.

Khalil told the New York Times that his anti-isael protests were not "antisemitic."

"I was not doing anything antisemitic," Khalil said. "I was literally advocating for the right of my people. I was literally advocating for an end of a genocide. I was advocating that the tuition fees that I and other students pay don’t go toward investing in weapons manufacturers. What’s antisemitic about this?"

He also said he did not think that his efforts would be challenged. 

JUDGE ORDERS ANTI-ISRAEL RINGLEADER MAHMOUD KHALIL TO BE RELEASED ON BAIL

"I came here with a clear understanding of freedom of expression," he said. "Even when it comes to Palestine. I never had any sort of concern that speaking up for Palestine would actually get me in jail."

Rubio has defended the Trump administration's apprehension of Khalil, saying that if someone applies for a visa to the United States and riles up anti-Semitic activities, their visa will be denied or revoked. 

"It was very ironic. I literally laughed," he said, adding, "What did I do that I’m a foreign policy threat to the United States? Did I, like, damage, the U.S.-Israeli relationship? Because it doesn’t appear so."

He told the New York Times that he believes money determines justice in America. 

"If you have money, there is rule of law," he said. "If you are abiding by the very narrow definition of what this administration is defining an American value to be, you may get rule of law. Otherwise you have to fight tooth and nail to get your due process and your rights."

Fox News’ Brie Stimson contributed to this report. 

A professor at Georgetown University is in hot water on social media over a post where he explained his "hope" for Iran doing "some symbolic strike" on a U.S. military base, igniting backlash on social media and calls for him to be fired.

"I’m not an expert, but I assume Iran could still get a bomb easily," Dr. Jonathan Brown, the Alwaleed bin Talal chair of Islamic Civilization in the School of Foreign Service at Georgetown University, posted on X on Sunday after the U.S. struck Iranian nuclear sites on Saturday night. 

"I hope Iran does some symbolic strike on a base, then everyone stops. I’m surprised this is what these FDD/Hasbara people have been auto-erotically asphyxiating themselves for all these years. Ironically, the main takeaways (in my non-expert opinion, and I’m happy to be corrected) from all this have nothing to do with a US attack: 1) Iran can take a licking; 2) if Israel attacks Iranian cities, it gets f---ed up pretty bad. I mean I’ve been shocked at the damage Iranian missiles caused; 3) despite his best efforts, Reza Pahlavi HVAC repair services still only third best in Nova."

Many conservatives on social media immediately reacted to the post and interpreted it as a college professor wishing for Iran to attack U.S. soldiers or at least put them in harm’s way.

AMERICAN TRAVELERS SHOULD KNOW ESCAPE ROUTES AT TRANSIT HUBS AFTER IRAN STRIKES, SECURITY EXPERT WARNS

"Are you kidding me?" conservative commentator Sage Steele posted on X in response to the post being picked up by the conservative influencer account LibsofTikTok. 

A ‘Professor of Islamic Civilization’ at @Georgetown ‘hopes Iran does some symbolic strike’ on Americans," GOP Rep. Randy Fine posted on X. "Some civilization. The President of Georgetown will be before @EdWorkforceCmte soon. This demon had better be gone by then. We have a Muslim problem in America."

"A Georgetown professor wants Iran to attack a US base," Foundation for the Defense of Democracies CEO Mark Dubowitz posted on X, before providing information on the background of Brown’s wife. 

"Brown is married to Laila Al-Arian, a journalist for the Muslim Brotherhood propaganda outlet Al Jazeera. Her father, Sami Al-Arian, was deported from the U.S. to Turkey. He was accused of providing material support to the US-designated and Iran-backed terrorist organization Palestinian Islamic Jihad."

FORMER DEM ADVISOR BLASTS 'UNHINGED CALLS FOR IMPEACHMENT' AFTER TRUMP'S IRAN ATTACK AS 'TRULY TDS'

Brown's father-in-law, Sami Al-Arian, was deported from the United States to Turkey in 2015 after a long legal battle where he pleaded "guilty" to supporting Palestinian Islamic Jihad, a terrorist organization, according to Politico. 

A 2006 Department of Justice press release said he acknowledged "in the plea agreement that he knew the PIJ used acts of violence as a means to achieve its objectives. Nevertheless, Al-Arian continued to assist the terrorist organization, for instance, by filing official paperwork to obtain immigration benefits for PIJ associate Bashir Nafi, and concealing the terrorist associations of various individuals associated with the PIJ."

"Al-Arian admits that he performed services for the PIJ in 1995 and thereafter, when he was a professor at the University of South Florida and after he knew that the PIJ had been designated by President Clinton as a terrorist organization," the press release said.

"I went to graduate school with Jonathan Brown," Jewish People Policy Institute fellow Dr. Sara Yael Hirschhorn posted on X. "I'm appalled to see him calling for Iran to attack U.S. troops and his awe at attacks on Israeli civilians. @Georgetown- enough!"

"These are the people teaching your kids at colleges and Universities," conservative influencer Laura Loomer posted on X. "@Georgetown should fire him."

In a follow-up post on Monday morning, Brown told his followers he deleted the post and explained why. 

"I deleted my previous tweet because a lot of people were interpreting it as a call for violence," Brown posted on X. "That’s not what I intended. I have two immediate family members in the US military who’ve served abroad and wouldn’t want any harm to befall American soldiers… or anyone!"

When reached for comment on his controversial post, Brown told Fox News Digital he "meant something like right after Solimani was killed, with telegraphed warning and no American casualties and no one felt any further need for attacks."

 "I was calling for de-esclation as I am very opposed to American involvement in foreign wars," he continued.

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A Georgetown University spokesperson told Fox News Digital the university was "appalled" by the social media post.

"We are appalled that a faculty member would call for a ‘symbolic strike’ on a military base in a social media post. The original statement is from an individual faculty member and not the University, and the faculty member has since deleted the post and stated that he would not want any harm to befall American servicemembers," the spokesperson said. "We are reviewing this matter to see if further action is warranted. We take our community’s concerns seriously and condemn language which is deeply inconsistent with Georgetown University’s values."

President Donald Trump announced the U.S. had struck a trio of nuclear facilities in Iran via a Saturday evening Truth Social post, which was not preceded by any media leaks of prior indication such strikes were imminent. 

The president ordered U.S. B-2 stealth bombers to carry out strikes against Iran’s Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan nuclear facilities.

"Iran's nuclear enrichment facilities have been completely and totally obliterated," Trump said. "And Iran, the bully of the Middle East, must now make peace. If they do not, future attacks would be far greater and a lot easier." 

Fox News Digital's Emma Colton contributed to this report