Rumeysa Ozturk

Academics & Education

State Department official defends canceling visas of pro-Palestinian academics The official testified at an ongoing trial that Trump’s deportation drive targets antisemitism and support for terrorism, not ideology or speech.

July 11, 2025   

(Politico) A top State Department official vigorously defended the Trump administration’s drive to cancel the visas of pro-Palestinian academics, arguing that the effort does not abridge free speech and targets students who are supporting terrorism or promoting antisemitism. John Armstrong, State’s top […]

Academics & Education

Trump officials used shadowy website to target pro-Palestinian academics for deportation, court records show The unsealed court records also reveal how deeply involved Trump aide Stephen Miller was in the effort to revoke the visas of pro-Palestinian academics.

July 9, 2025 and   

(Politico) As the Trump administration identified pro-Palestinian academics to target for deportation, it relied heavily on an anonymously-run pro-Israel website that has been criticized for doxxing, according to newly unsealed court documents and testimony at an ongoing trial. To support President Donald […]

Academics & Education

Trump admin waffles in court on whether pro-Palestinian foreigners have full First Amendment rights It’s a central question in the first major trial of Trump’s second term.

July 7, 2025   

(Politico) A trial on a First Amendment lawsuit challenging the Trump administration’s drive to deport pro-Palestinian academics quickly confronted a thorny legal issue Monday: whether foreigners in the U.S. enjoy the same free speech rights as American citizens. The administration’s stance on […]

Academics & Education

Trump’s effort to deport pro-Palestinian activists goes to trial The case challenging the administration’s crackdown on pro-Palestinian academics marks the first major trial of Trump’s second term.

July 6, 2025 and   

(Politico) At least five times in recent weeks, federal judges have forcefully rejected President Donald Trump’s efforts to deport pro-Palestinian student activists, issuing one stinging ruling after another to declare the efforts unconstitutional — with one judge comparing the deportation drive to […]

Government & Politics

Zohran Mamdani says mayors shouldn’t ‘police speech’ when asked to condemn ‘globalize the intifada’ slogan In an interview on NBC News' 'Meet the Press,' Mamdani said, 'that's not language that I use' and 'I don't believe that the role of the mayor is to police speech.'

June 29, 2025   

(NBC) Zohran Mamdani, the presumptive Democratic nominee in New York City’s mayoral race, on Sunday again sidestepped an opportunity to condemn the phrase “globalize the intifada,” saying that mayors shouldn’t “police speech.” “That’s not language that I use,” Mamdani said when asked […]

Academics & Education

No evidence linking Tufts student to antisemitism or terrorism, State Dept. office found An internal memo, prepared days before Rumeysa Ozturk was detained by ICE agents, raises doubts about the Trump administration’s claims that she supports Hamas.

April 13, 2025   

(Washington Post) Days before masked Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detained Tufts University student Rumeysa Ozturk to deport her, the State Department determined that the Trump administration had not produced any evidence showing that she engaged in antisemitic activities or made public […]

Academics & Education

US to check social media as it seeks to bar non-citizens suspected of antisemitism The scrutiny will apply to foreign students, people applying for green cards — or seeking any other kind of immigration benefit.

April 9, 2025   

(Politico) U.S. authorities will examine the social media of foreigners seeking to enter the country as the Trump administration seeks to bar people it believes have engaged in antisemitic activity, the Department of Homeland Security announced Wednesday. DHS will apply the scrutiny […]

Academics & Education

‘Common sense’ arrest of pro-Hamas protester Rumeysa Ozturk, says Homeland Security Federal investigations found that the Turkish national and Tufts student 'engaged in activities in support of Hamas,' the Department of Homeland Security told JNS.

March 26, 2025   

(JNS) U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officers arrested the Turkish national Rumeysa Ozturk, a doctoral student at Tufts University in the Boston area, for supporting Hamas, according to the U.S. Department of Homeland Security. Ozturk was “granted the privilege to be in […]