Mohsen Mahdawi, a 34-year-old U.S. permanent resident who was raised in a refugee camp in the West Bank, was detained during his April 14 naturalization interview in Vermont.

Speaking to NPR in his first media interview since his detention, lawful permanent U.S. resident Mohsen Mahdawi finds peace in meditation and hopes "America will fulfill its promise."

A Vermont federal judge ordered Wednesday that Mohsen Mahdawi, the Palestinian student activist from Columbia University who was detained at his U.S. citizenship test, be released from federal