Silenced and Deported? The Shocking Arrest of a Tufts Student Sparks Outrage
Somerville, Massachusetts
In a scene that looked more like an abduction than an official arrest, U.S. immigration authorities detained Turkish doctoral student Rumeysa Ozturk, a Fulbright Scholar at Tufts University, sparking a national outcry. Her crime? Publicly supporting Palestinians during Israel’s war in Gaza.
Ozturk, 30, had just stepped out to break her Ramadan fast when Department of Homeland Security agents swarmed her, their faces covered, their vehicles unmarked. According to surveillance footage, they grabbed her in broad daylight as stunned neighbors watched. “It looked like a kidnapping,” said Michael Mathis, a software engineer whose camera captured the disturbing moment.
Ozturk’s arrest is the latest in what critics are calling a crackdown on international students who express pro-Palestinian views. Under President Donald Trump’s administration, foreign students legally in the U.S. have found themselves facing visa revocations, deportations, and detentions—often with little explanation beyond vague accusations of supporting terrorism.
The Department of Homeland Security claims Ozturk engaged in activities supporting Hamas, a designated foreign terrorist organization, but has provided no public evidence. Her lawyer, Mahsa Khanbabai, argues that her detention is retaliation for exercising free speech, pointing to a 2023 opinion piece she co-authored in the Tufts Daily that criticized the university’s response to calls for divestment from companies linked to Israel.
After Ozturk’s arrest, U.S. District Judge Indira Talwani ordered immigration authorities not to move her outside Massachusetts without a 48-hour notice. Yet, within hours, she had vanished—transferred to Louisiana in what many are calling a blatant defiance of the court’s order.
Democratic lawmakers, including U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren, have condemned the arrest, calling it an attack on civil liberties. “This is the latest in an alarming pattern,” Warren said, while protests erupted in Somerville demanding Ozturk’s immediate release.
Her case mirrors a growing list of foreign students and academics targeted for their pro-Palestinian stance. From Columbia University to Brown and Georgetown, the Trump administration has increasingly sought to remove students, scholars, and activists under accusations many claim are politically motivated.
The message is clear: Speak out, and you might be next.
