Ahead of a court hearing, the Columbia University activist was able to meet and hold his newborn son for the first time.

An immigration judge in Louisiana on Thursday denied a request to terminate Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil’s deportation proceedings after his attorneys argued that he was arrested illegally and without a warrant over two months ago.

Khalil's lawyers are trying to convince an immigration judge that if he's deported, Israel could target him over his advocacy for Palestinian rights.