"This is the first arrest of many to come," the president said of Mahmoud Khalil, a green card holder abducted by immigration agents and sent to Louisiana.

Some organizations applauded the move. But the raid chilled other American Jews, even some who consider themselves supporters of Israel.

Democratic lawmakers are condemning the arrest of a former Columbia University student by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and the revocation of his legal status in the United States,