Federal agents have detained an international graduate student studying at Tufts University in Massachusetts, the woman’s lawyer told USA TODAY on Wednesday.
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents detained 30-year-old Turkish national Rumeysa Ozturk, who was in the country on a valid F-1 visa, near her home on Tuesday as she was on her way to meet friends to break her Ramadan fast, said her attorney, Mahsa Khanbabai.
A senior Department of Homeland Security spokesperson told USA TODAY on Wednesday that investigators found that Ozturk “engaged in activities in support of Hamas,” a designated terrorist organization.
“A visa is a privilege, not a right,” said the spokesperson, who declined to be named. “Glorifying and supporting terrorists who kill Americans is grounds for visa issuance to be terminated. This is commonsense security.”
Khanbabai, who spoke to USA TODAY before the agency lodged the allegations involving Hamas, did not immediately respond to a request for comment about the development.
Earlier in the day, she said that she did not know where her client was being held even 20 hours after ICE detained Ozturk.
“The government has not told me where my client is located,” Khanbabai said Wednesday afternoon. “This is incredibly concerning.”
Ozturk’s arrest comes as the Trump administration continues to detain students at institutions across the country over terrorism allegations after they participated in pro-Palestinian protests.
Judge orders that Ozturk must remain in state
In court filings obtained by USA TODAY, U.S. District Court Judge Indira Talwani ordered U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to keep Ozturk in Massachusetts, as well as provide 48-hour notice if the agency wants to move her outside the state and justify why.
Moreover, the judge also issued an order that gave immigration officials until Friday to respond to a filing to have her appear in court.
“We are unaware of her whereabouts and have not been able to contact her,” Khanbabai said. No charges have been filed against Rumeysa to date that we are aware of.”
The DHS spokesperson did not immediately respond to follow-up questions from USA TODAY about whether Khanbabai has been charged or where she’s being held.
An ICE detainee locator showed that Ozturk was being held in a Louisiana detention facility.
More about Rumeysa Ozturk
Ozturk is “soft spoken, kind and gentle soul” and “is not an activist person,” Reyyan Bilge, a psychology professor at Northeastern University who identified herself a longtime a friend of Ozturk’s, said in an interview with the Associated Press
“She does not carry a hateful bone in her body let alone being antisemitic,” Bilge posted on X. “I wholeheartedly vouch for her and unless we speak up, these horrific events will continue to happen!”
Two student organizations called for an emergency rally in support of Ozturk near Tufts University on Wednesday afternoon.
At the rally, demonstrators held signs that said “Free Rumeysa Ozturk!” and “Today Rumeysa, tomorrow any one of us.” One organizer shouted: “When refugees are under attack what do we do?” Hundreds shouted back: “Stand up, fight back!”
Tufts University President Sunil Kumar said in a Tuesday night email that the school was told that Ozturk’s visa was terminated and was working to confirm that information.
“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 email read.
Last March, Ozturk co-author of a piece published in The Tufts Daily, the school’s student newspaper, that called on Tufts to divest from Israeli corporations and “acknowledge the Palestinian genocide.”
Trump administration has targeted other students
Ozturk’s arrest comes following the Trump administration’s executive order that seeks to deport non-citizens of the United States involved in pro-Palestinian protests.
Earlier this month, ICE agents arrested Columbia graduate student Mahmoud Khalil on accusations that he led activities aligned with Hamas. Khalil’s attorneys have said he is a green card holder married to an American citizen, and are challenging the validity of the arrest and detention.
“This is the first arrest of many to come,” Trump said in a social media post celebrating Khalil’s detention. “We will find, apprehend and deport these terrorist supporters from our country – never to return again.”
Khalil acted as a lead negotiator for student protesters calling on the university to cut ties with Israel amid the war in Gaza, end student-exchange programs, and close Columbia’s campus in Tel Aviv, as well as financial transparency on the school’s investments.
Days later, a Georgetown University postdoctoral fellow from India, Badar Khan Suri, was also detained by ICE agents after being told that his visa had been revoked.
Contributing: Jonathan Limehouse, Trevor Hughes, Eduardo Cuevas, USA TODAY, and Reuters
Fernando Cervantes Jr. is a trending news reporter for USA TODAY. Reach him at [email protected] and follow him on X @fern_cerv_.
