The Trump administration is continuing its witch hunt of international students whose political views it disagrees with, this time at Tufts University.
On Tuesday evening, Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish Ph.D. student at Tufts University with a valid F-1 visa, was detained by Immigrations and Customs Enforcement officials while on her way to meet with friends to break her Ramadan fast, according to a statement from her lawyer.
A video of Ozturk’s kidnapping shows six ICE agents forcibly removing Ozturk’s backpack, placing her hands behind her back, and putting her in a dark-grey SUV, which then drives away. In a cowardly display of power, all of the agents covered their faces with masks.
NEW: I’ve obtained new footage of the abduction of Tufts student Runeysa Ozturk which includes audio of her kidnappers. pic.twitter.com/gucwFxdnOi
— Daniel Boguslaw (@DRBoguslaw) March 26, 2025
“We are unaware of her whereabouts and have not been able to contact her,” said Ozturk’s lawyer, Mahsa Khanbabai. “No charges have been filed against Rumeysa to date that we are aware of.”
Tufts University said it was not made aware of Ozturk’s kidnapping before it happened but was later notified that her visa had been revoked.
U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani on Tuesday had ordered that Ozturk should not be moved out of Massachusetts “without providing advance notice of the intended move” providing reason in writing for why “such a movement is necessary.”
Last spring, Ozturk co-authored an opinion essay in the student newspaper that demanded Tufts “acknowledge the Palestinian genocide” and divest from companies tied to Israel.
“The university had no pre-knowledge of this incident and did not share any information with federal authorities prior to the event, and the location where this took place is not affiliated with Tufts University,” the statement reads. “We realize that tonight’s news will be distressing to some members of our community, particularly the members of our international community.”
Ozturk is just the latest valid visa holder to be targeted by the Trump administration for supporting Palestine. Earlier this month, Mahmoud Khalil, a graduate from Columbia University who participated in pro-Palestinian protests at the university, was unlawfully detained by ICE. DHS has since detained at least two more international students with visas for their protesting of Israel’s genocide in Gaza, a clear violation of First Amendment rights.
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