Vermont Senator Peter Welch met Monday with detained Columbia student Mohsen Mahdawi, a green card holder from Palestine who was arrested in Vermont when he appeared for what he was told would be a naturalization test. Ahead of his arrest, Mahdawi helped lead campus protests against Israel’s war on Gaza. Senator Welch, who’s calling for Mahdawi’s release, published a brief interview with Mahdawi recorded inside the Northwest State Correctional Facility.

Mohsen Mahdawi: “I want to tell everyone that I feel so loved and so supported. And I am here in good hands. I am centered. I am clear. I am grounded. And I don’t want you to worry about me. I want you to continue working for the democracy of this country and for humanity. The war must stop.”