Zohran Mamdani Reveals What He Told Trump About ICE Arrests
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Friday that he told President Donald Trump that he believes U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrests are not improving public safety.
Mamdani revealed more details of the impromptu meeting in the Oval Office on Thursday, which originally focused on affordable housing but was overshadowed by the arrest of Columbia University student Elmina "Ellie" Aghayeva, saying he had been clear with the president about his concerns over ICE's tactics.
"I shared directly with the president a list of names of Columbia students and those who've also been detained because of their activity on the Columbia campus, and that these actions do nothing to advance the cause of public safety," Mamdani told reporters on Friday. "And I asked that these cases be dropped, and the president said that he would look into it."
After the two met in Washington, D.C., Mamdani spoke with the president by phone, and Trump said Aghayeva would be released.
Mamdani also provided the White House with the names of four other students facing immigration proceedings linked to pro‑Palestinian demonstrations: Mahmoud Khalil, Yunseo Chung, Mohsen Mahdawi and Leqaa Kordia. Only Kordia remains in custody, but all proceedings are continuing through the court.
The mayor said Friday he asked that all four cases be dropped.
Trump was a staunch critic of Mamdani during last year's New York City mayoral campaign, but in the months since the Democratic Socialist's win, the Republican president has taken a softer approach. The pair met in November, before Mamdani took office, and discussed their potential working relationship, with a press briefing showing the pair smiling and shaking hands. The mayor has been praised for his approach to speaking with Trump, who spent much of his life living in New York.
What To Know
Mamdani spoke about his meeting with Trump during a press conference in Brooklyn on Friday. One reporter asked about his change in stance on the president from his time on the campaign trail to the present day, where he had appeared cautious about criticizing Trump.
"The president and I have many disagreements, which we share publicly and we share privately," Mamdani said. "And I also said on that same campaign trail that I would be willing to work with anyone, no matter disagreements, so long as it was to the benefit of the city that we love. That is what it comes back to."
One area where the two do differ is immigration enforcement. NYC is a so-called sanctuary city with policies preventing local police from working with federal agents, including ICE. So far, no significant operation has taken place in the city, unlike in Chicago, Minneapolis, and Los Angeles.
When Did Donald Trump and Zohran Mamdani Meet?
Trump and Mamdani met for about an hour on Thursday in an unannounced meeting focused largely on housing policy. Mamdani’s communications director, Anna Bahr, said the mayor’s team created a mock front page modeled on the New York Daily News to illustrate how a major housing initiative could be received by the public.
The mock headline read, “Trump to City: Let’s Build,” a play on the newspaper’s iconic 1975 cover declaring “Ford to City: Drop Dead,” which referred to President Gerald Ford’s refusal at the time to provide federal aid to New York City during its fiscal crisis.
Mamdani later posted a photograph from the meeting on social media, showing Trump reviewing the mock front page.
Why Were ICE Agents on the Columbia University Campus?
ICE agents arrived on Columbia's campus early Thursday morning. The school's Acting President Claire Shipman later said that agents misrepresented their reason for being there.
She accused agents of claiming to be looking for a missing 5-year-old girl to gain entry to campus housing, using the same excuse to enter an apartment, and then instead arresting Aghayeva.
The Department of Homeland Security later said it had detained Aghayeva, "an illegal alien from Azerbaijan, whose student visa was terminated in 2016 under the Obama administration for failing to attend classes."
DHS said that the Columbia building manager and the student's roommate let officers into the apartment, and that she had no pending appeals or applications with DHS.
Students protest at Columbia University after ICE agents detained student Ellie Aghayeva on February 26, 2026. | Ryan Murphy/Getty Images
Who Is Ellie Aghayeva?
Originally from Azerbaijan, Aghayeva is a senior at Columbia University with a valid visa, according to a statement released by her friends through the American Association of University Professors. She is majoring in neuroscience and political science.
She has not been publicly linked by authorities or the university to the pro‑Palestinian demonstrations that roiled Columbia’s campus last year. Friends and faculty members say she is best known on campus and online as a content creator, sharing videos about student life and navigating college as an immigrant.
Aghayeva has built a sizable social media following by posting day‑in‑the‑life content, study routines and advice for international students. She has more than 113,000 followers on TikTok and 107,000 followers on Instagram. Columbia officials declined to comment on the length of her enrollment or details of her immigration status, citing privacy concerns.
What People Are Saying
Elmina "Ellie" Aghayeva, on Instagram Thursday: "Hi guys. I am so grateful for everyone of you. I just got out a little while ago. I am safe and okay. In an uber otw back home. I am so sorry, but I am in complete shock over what happened and my phone is blowing up with calls from reporters. I need a bit of time to process everything. I will come back soon but please don't worry."
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NYC Council Speaker Julie Menin and Majority Leader Shaun Abreu, in a joint statement Thursday morning: "ICE has no place in our schools and universities. These activities do not make our city or country safer, but rather drive mistrust and danger. As Columbia College alumni, our hearts are with the community there, and we have been in contact with the University to offer our assistance."
Claire Shipman, in a video message to Columbia University Thursday night: "Let me be clear—misrepresenting identity and other facts to gain access to a residential building is a breach of protocol. All law enforcement agencies must have a judicial warrant or judicial subpoena to gain access to a Columbia residential building. All law enforcement agencies—including DHS and ICE—are obligated to follow established legal and ethical standards. And we expect those standards to be respected."
