Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil takes the stand in bid for asylum

Woman found guilty of stowing away on Delta flight from New York to Paris

A Brooklyn jury convicted Svetlana Dali of a federal stowaway charge

A federal jury has convicted Svetlana Dali of stowing away on a Delta flight to Paris last November after passing through security in a lane reserved for crewmembers and bypassing gate agents by blending in with boarding passengers.

Dali had been charged with a federal stowaway count for boarding an overnight Delta flight from John F. Kennedy International Airport in New York City on Nov. 26, 2024, and traveling to Paris-Charles de Gaulle Airport in France without having a ticket. She had pleaded not guilty.

A Brooklyn federal jury found her guilty on Thursday.

Booking photo for Svetlana Dali who was arrested for the second time this month on Dec. 16. 2024, after she cut off her ankle monitor and tried to sneak into C...Show more

Niagara County Sheriff's Office

Dali, a Russian citizen and U.S. permanent resident who most recently lived in Philadelphia, took the witness stand during the brief trial. She admitted she did not have a boarding pass when she walked onto the flight.

Instead, she said she walked through to "where the people were boarding the flights and then I just walked into the airplane."

MORE: 'Very unusual and disconcerting': New videos show accused stowaway boarding Delta flight from New York to Paris

Dali said she stayed in the bathroom "almost the duration of the flight, almost from the beginning to the end."

The judge did not set a sentencing date. Her sentencing guidelines range is zero to six months in prison. She has already been in custody for more than five months.

In this still from video, Svetlana Dali is seen walking past the gate attendants at the rear of a large group of people. Dali, who is faced away from the camera, is...Show more

Port Authority of New York and New Jersey

In a video obtained by ABC News, Dali can be seen walking up to gate B38 at Terminal 4 while other passengers have their boarding passes and passports checked for the Paris flight. After gate attendants assisted a separate group of customers and ushered them toward the jet bridge, Dali followed immediately behind, the video shows.

Dali was ultimately spotted by Delta employees before the plane landed in France, according to the FBI complaint. The complaint stated that Dali was unable to provide a boarding pass and that once the plane landed, French law enforcement would not allow her to pass the customs area.

MORE: Accused Delta stowaway had prior airport security breaches, feds say

Officials attempted to send Dali back to the United States on another flight shortly after, but Dali was removed from the plane after insisting against her return.

She was eventually brought back to New York to face charges. During an interview with the FBI upon her return, Dali reportedly admitted to flying as a stowaway and stated she did not have a plane ticket and that she intentionally evaded TSA security officials and Delta employees so she could travel without buying one, according to the complaint.

After being released from custody in early December 2024, Dali allegedly cut off her ankle monitor and traveled to Buffalo, where she tried unsuccessfully to cross over the Peace Bridge into Canada on a bus on Dec. 16, 2024. She has been in custody since.

In the wake of the JFK incident, a Transportation Security Administration spokesperson said that a review had been conducted and as a result, "additional security measures are now in place."

"TSA's security measures are always evolving to ensure this type of incident does not happen again," the spokesperson said.

Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil takes the stand in bid for asylum

The judge will not immediately issue a ruling

Following a nearly 10-hour court hearing Thursday, an immigration judge will not immediately decide if Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, who the Trump administration has targeted for deportation after he helped organize pro-Palestinian protests as a student at Columbia University, is eligible for asylum.

Instead Judge Jamee Comans is giving attorneys for Khalil, who took the stand Thursday, as well as attorneys for the Trump administration until June 2 to file written closing statements on the matter before she makes her decision.

Khalil, a green card holder who is married to an American citizen, has been held in a Louisiana detention facility since ICE agents arrested him in the lobby of his apartment building in New York City in March.

Student negotiator Mahmoud Khalil is seen at a pro-Palestinian protest encampment on the Columbia University campus in New York, April 29, 2024.

Ted Shaffrey/AP, FILE

When he took the stand Thursday, Khalil testified in support of his case for asylum and for withholding of removal to either Algeria or Syria, where he is a citizen of both countries.

He spoke at length about growing up in a Palestinian refugee camp in Syria where he said his friends and family faced torture, kidnappings and, in some cases, death. He repeatedly stated that the Trump administration's accusations that he's a Hamas supporter makes him a target for Israel in any country he could be deported to. In Syria, he also said remnants of the Assad regime as well as military factions within the country could target him as well or that he could be used as a "bargaining chip" in negotiations between the new Syrian government and other nations including the U.S.

Prior to the hearing, Khalil met his infant son for the first time. The proceedings were attended by Khalil's wife, Dr. Noor Abdalla, who gave birth to the couple's son on April 21 during Khalil's ongoing detention in Louisiana.

Throughout the hearing Khalil would often look back toward his baby when the newborn cooed.

PHOTO: The People's Graduation hosted for students unable to participate in Columbia and NYU's commencement ceremony, in New York

Dr. Noor Abdalla, ICE detainee Mahmoud Khalil's wife, accepts an honorary diploma for Khalil while holding the couple's one-month-old baby, Deen, at the...Show more

Angelina Katsanis/Reuters

Khalil also testified about his role negotiating between different protest groups at Columbia.

"The liberation of Jewish people and Palestinian people are intertwined," he said.

In one of his final remarks on the stand, Khalil said he would continue to protest against the war in Gaza.

"I spent a good time of my life fleeing from harm, advocating for the marginalized to have rights. That's what put me in danger. Israel is committing genocide. America is funding that genocide. Columbia is investing in it. That is what I was protesting. This is what I will continue to protest. This is what everyone should protest. This is where our efforts should go," he said.

Earlier in the hearing, several expert witnesses were called by Khalil's legal team, including U.C. Davis historian Muriam Davis, an expert on the Middle East and North Africa, who testified to the dangers Khalil might face if deported to Algeria or Syria, due to the notoriety of the case.

"In general, his case has achieved an international prominence that would make him a target," Davis testified.

PHOTO: Protesters outside immigration court hearing for Mahmoud Khalil in Louisiana

Protesters gather outside an immigration court hearing for detained Columbia student Mahmoud Khalil in Jena, Louisiana, U.S., May 22, 2025.

Jayla Whitfield-anderson/Reuters

MORE: Mahmoud Khalil's challenge to his detention moves forward

Last month, Comans ruled that Khalil is deportable based on Secretary of State Marco Rubio's assertion that his continued presence and actions in the country poses "adverse foreign policy consequence." She did not ask to review any evidence backing those claims.

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 a memo filed in the case, Rubio wrote that Khalil should be deported because of his alleged role in "antisemitic protests and disruptive activities, which fosters a hostile environment for Jewish students in the United States."

Earlier in Thursday's proceedings, Comans denied Khalil's motion to terminate the case based on his allegation that his arrest and detention is illegal because he was arrested without a warrant.

The judge also declined to hear argument from Khalil's team pertaining to the government's allegations that Khalil lied on his application for a green card, saying the issue was "irrelevant" because she had already determined that Khalil was removable.

There were several heated exchanges between Khalil's counsel, Marc Van Der Hout, and Judge Comans, who at one point cautioned Van Der Hout "not to argue with her."

Van Der Hout, his voice rising, replied, "Well, I am going to argue with you."

"And you're going to lose," Comans responded.

Ahead of the hearing, Khalil's attorney submitted over 600 pages of documents, declarations, and expert analyses supporting their claim that he is not antisemitic and that he could face torture and death if he were to be deported.