ICE detainee from New Jersey suffers seizure after nearly 1 year in custody, lawyers say
A Palestinian woman who had been living and working in Paterson, New Jersey, has been held at a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement facility in Texas for nearly a year.
Her legal team says her health is in danger because of it.
DHS ignored release orders, legal team alleges
According to the Department of Homeland Security, 33-year-old Leqaa Kordia, from the West Bank, was arrested on March 13, 2025, for overstaying her student visa, adding that she was "found to be providing financial support to individuals living in nations hostile to the U.S."
Hazmah Abushaban, Kordia's cousin, said Kordia had sent her family overseas some money, describing it as "the most American thing someone can think of."
"We're not talking about substantial amounts here," he said.
Kordia's legal team said an immigration judge has twice ordered her release. Abushaban, who is a U.S. citizen living in Florida, said he tried to post bail for his cousin both times, but the money was either returned to him or not accepted.
The legal team accused DHS of simply ignoring the orders because Kordia participated in a 2024 protest against the Israeli military at Columbia University, where she was arrested by the NYPD.
When CBS News New York asked a DHS spokesperson for an explanation as to why Kardia has been held in Texas for as long as she has and whether they had plans to deport her, they did not address either question in their response.
ICE detainee hospitalized after seizure
Kordia's legal team released a letter Thursday, which they say was written by Kordia from Prairieland Detention Center in Texas, where she's being held. In it, she describes recently suffering a seizure which landed her in the hospital and may mean she needs medications that will not be provided, according to her lawyers.
"For three days in the emergency room, my hands and legs were weighed down by heavy chains," the letter read, in part.
"One of our residents is not only in custody, but she's in chains," Paterson Mayor Andre Sayegh said at City Hall on Friday.
In a statement, DHS said, in part, "On Feb. 6, 2026, at approximately 8:45 p.m., medical staff at the Prairieland Detention Center in Alvarado, Texas, notified ICE that detainee Leqaa Kordia was admitted to Texas Health Huguley Hospital in Burleson, Texas, for further evaluation following a seizure. Her admission to the hospital was made out of an abundance of caution to ensure her health and safety. The hospital is monitoring her condition and ICE will continue to ensure she receives proper medical care."
Abushaban said he had visited his cousin at the Texas facility less than a week before she suffered the seizure.
"She was very, you know, unrecognizable," he said. "While we're there, talking through barbed wire, she didn't have the strength to hold up a phone."
Meanwhile, Kordia's friends and loved ones back in Paterson are waiting for her return to her community.
