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The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced Friday it has revoked the visa of 1 Columbia University pupil and arrested another, escalating its crackdown connected students engaged successful protests implicit the struggle successful Gaza.
The stripping of the visa comes conscionable days aft the detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a erstwhile grad pupil astatine the university, by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). Khalil has a greenish card, which tin lone beryllium revoked by an migration judge.
But Ranjani Srinivasan, a national of India and doctoral pupil successful municipality readying astatine Columbia University, had her F-1 pupil visa revoked connected March 5, according to DHS.
The national bureau said Srinivasan “was progressive successful activities supporting Hamas, a violent organization,” sharing a video of her passing done airdrome security.
Another Columbia student, Leqaa Kordia, a Palestinian from the West Bank, was arrested by ICE for allegedly overstaying her F-1 pupil visa.
Kordia's visa was terminated backmost successful January of 2022 for deficiency of attendance, and she was arrested successful April 2024 implicit her engagement successful the pro-Palestinian protests connected campus.
DHS did not springiness specifics astir the alleged activities of either student.
In announcing Srinivasan’s departure, DHS promoted its caller app, the CBP Home App, adding that the Srinivasan utilized the app’s caller “self-deport” diagnostic by uploading her question plans and indicating her intent to permission the country.
“It is simply a privilege to beryllium granted a visa to unrecorded and survey successful the United States of America. When you advocator for unit and coercion that privilege should beryllium revoked, and you should not beryllium successful this country,” Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said successful a statement.
The Trump medication has been nether occurrence by escaped code experts for releasing fewer details astir the overseas students it has targeted and perchance conflating their First Amendment close to protestation with amerciable actions specified arsenic giving a violent radical monetary resources.
F-1 pupil visa holders lone person 15 days to permission the state aft the visas are revoked.
Student visas tin beryllium revoked for aggregate reasons, including transgression concerns, prolonged lack from school, giving incorrect accusation oregon changing schools without permission.
The Hill has reached retired to Columbia University for comment.
The announcement shows an enlargement of enactment since ICE arrested Khalil, a pb negotiator during the Columbia pro-Palestinian encampment past spring.
Immigration and civilian rights advocates person blasted the move, calling it an maltreatment of national migration authorities to people escaped speech.
Khalil’s attorneys person sued to get his lawsuit moved to New York aft ICE took him much than 1,000 miles distant from his location to beryllium held successful Louisiana.
His lawyers noted Khalil has yet to beryllium charged with a crime, and it is inactive unclear what activities the national authorities targeted him over.
The Foundation for Individuals Rights and Expression has sent a missive to the Trump medication demanding to cognize the crushed for the arrest.
Federal officials, including President Trump and Secretary of State Marco Rubio, said Khalil’s detention was lone the opening of targeting overseas students who participated successful the encampments.
“We volition find, apprehend, and deport these violent sympathizers from our state — ne'er to instrumentality again,” Trump said. “If you enactment terrorism, including the slaughtering of guiltless men, women, and children, your beingness is contrary to our nationalist and overseas argumentation interests, and you are not invited here. We expect each 1 of America’s Colleges and Universities to comply.”
The DHS announcement comes a time aft its agents searched 2 Columbia dorm rooms, with the assemblage saying the agents obtained 2 judicial warrants but gave nary accusation astir wherefore the hunt was conducted oregon who was the target.
