Anna Betts
@annabetts.bsky.social
2.6K followers 290 following 8 posts
reporter @GuardianUS • formerly @nytimes @buzzfeednews • writing also in @washingtonpost @verge @ellemagazine etc. •
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annabetts.bsky.social
NEW: Around 4 months after being detained and nearly deported by the Trump admin, Mohsen Mahdawi returned to Columbia University on Tuesday.

In his first interview since being back, Mahdawi tells me he'll "continue to work for peace and justice".

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Palestinian activist Mohsen Mahdawi returns to Columbia University: ‘They have failed to silence me’
Mahdawi was arrested and targeted for deportation but the permanent US resident is resuming postgraduate studies
www.theguardian.com
annabetts.bsky.social
NEW: Hockey fans were bombarded with gambling logos and adverts – sometimes as often as every 13 seconds – during TV coverage of high-profile games earlier this year, according to exclusive research shared with the Guardian.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Revealed: gambling logos and ads seen up to every 13 seconds during big sports games in US
Critics warn of top sports becoming a ‘second-by-second gambling opportunity’ as new study shared with the Guardian reveals scale of marketing blitz
www.theguardian.com
annabetts.bsky.social
NEW: A federal judge in Vermont has just ordered the release of Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palestinian green-card holder and student at Columbia University who was detained and ordered deported by the Trump administration April 14.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Federal judge in Vermont orders release of Columbia student Mohsen Mahdawi
Mahdawi, a lawful permanent US resident, was detained and ordered deported by the Trump administration despite not being charged with a crime
www.theguardian.com
annabetts.bsky.social
Exclusive: In a letter marking one month since the detention of Mahmoud Khalil, his wife, Noor Abdalla, vows to continue to fight for his release and for the right to speak up on behalf of Palestinian rights.

Read the letter here.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
‘We will persist’: Mahmoud Khalil’s wife says pro-Palestinian voices won’t be silenced
Exclusive: Noor Abdalla attacks Columbia officials alongside Trump administration in letter to husband
www.theguardian.com
Reposted by Anna Betts
ohheyjenna.bsky.social
Mahmoud Khalil: “My arrest was a direct consequence of exercising my right to free speech as I advocated for a free Palestine and an end to the genocide in Gaza... It is our moral imperative to persist in the struggle for their complete freedom.”

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
‘I am a political prisoner’: Mahmoud Khalil says he’s being targeted for political beliefs
Exclusive: Palestinian activist and green card holder speaks out from Louisiana detention for first time
www.theguardian.com
annabetts.bsky.social
EXCLUSIVE: In his first public remarks since being detained by federal immigration authorities, Mahmoud Khalil criticizes the conditions in US detention and says he is being targeted by the Trump administration for his political beliefs.

Read here:

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
‘I am a political prisoner’: Mahmoud Khalil says he’s being targeted for political beliefs
Exclusive: Palestinian activist and green card holder speaks out from Louisiana detention for first time
www.theguardian.com
annabetts.bsky.social
NEW: Betar US, a far-right pro-Israel group who claimed credit for the arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, told me that they've created a "deportation list" and say they submitted “thousands of names” to Trump administration officials for similar treatment.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Pro-Israel group says it has ‘deportation list’ and has sent ‘thousands’ of names to Trump officials
Betar US is among far-right groups supporting Trump effort to deport students involved in pro-Palestinian protests
www.theguardian.com
annabetts.bsky.social
In letters obtained by the Guardian, gambling giants told a prominent US senator that their controversial VIP programs were “not designed” to prompt frequent bettors to bet more. But problem gambling advocates are skeptical.

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
US gambling giants face scrutiny over VIP programs: ‘Profits take priority over people’
Sports betting firms claim their programs are ‘not designed’ to enable problem bettors – but advocates are skeptical
www.theguardian.com