US Secretary of State Marco Rubio revealed that Turkish student Rümeysa Öztürk, who was handcuffed and detained by Customs and Border Protection officials, had her student visa revoked and will be deported.

Rubio addressed a question about Öztürk during an event at the department.

Rubio confirmed the cancellation of Öztürk’s F1 student visa. Describing the policies under which visas can be cancelled, Rubio stated, “If you apply for a visa to enter the United States as a student and tell us that your only reason for coming to the US is not just to write a column but to engage in activities like disrupting universities, harassing students, taking over buildings, creating chaos, then we will not grant you a visa, and if we have, we will revoke it after you have lied to us and entered the US and participated in such activities.” The US Secretary also emphasized that once a visa is revoked, the individual loses their legal status in the US and cannot stay, stating, “Once you lose your visa, you are not legally in the United States, and like any country in the world, we have the right to deport you from our country. It’s that simple.” Accusing Öztürk of attempting to “incite rebellion at a university,” Secretary Rubio remarked, “We give you a visa to educate yourself and get a degree, not to become a social activist who burns down our university campuses, and if you decide to do that, we will revoke your visa.”

DETAINED WHILE LEAVING HOME TO BREAK THE FAST After completing high school with the top score and obtaining a dual degree in university in Turkey, Rümeysa Öztürk continued her doctoral studies in the US as a Fulbright scholar. On the evening of March 25, she was arrested by plainclothes ICE officers while leaving her home in Massachusetts to attend a fast-breaking meal. As the ICE officers handcuffed the Turkish student from behind, her vocal objections were captured on camera. Öztürk’s lawyer Mahsa Khanbabai stated that her client could not be reached, and Tufts University stated in a press release that the university was not informed of the detention procedure. Concerned Turkish friends of Öztürk shared information that the Canary Mission website, which “profiles those who support Palestinian protests” in US universities, had recently published their private information along with a picture of an article Öztürk wrote on the subject last year. US Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren described Rümeysa Öztürk’s arrest as “the latest example of a disconcerting pattern of obstructing civil liberties.” A senior spokesman from the US Department of Homeland Security had previously alleged to Anadolu Agency that Rümeysa Öztürk engaged in activities not suitable for a student visa. Öztürk’s arrest took place during a period when the Trump administration was applying pressure on Palestinian supporters among students and academics. Previously, Palestinian activist Mahmud Halil and recently graduated Columbia University student was also arrested. Georgetown University researcher Badar Han Suri was also targeted for deportation for alleged “Hamas propaganda and antisemitism,” but US Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles halted the decision.