Action over anti-Israel protests: US cancels visas of 400 students including Pakistanis

WASHINGTON: More than 400 international students, including several from Pakistan and other Muslim countries, have reportedly had their US student visas abruptly revoked without prior notice or legal explanation following their alleged participation in anti-Israel protests across top American universities.

According to US media, prestigious institutions such as Harvard, Stanford, UCLA, and the University of Michigan are among those affected. The visa cancellations reportedly came without due legal process, with students caught off guard by the sudden revocations.

The move has drawn widespread concern and speculation, especially after it emerged that the Trump administration may be targeting students linked to pro-Palestinian demonstrations. University officials and legal experts have expressed alarm over the apparent bypassing of due process.

Six days ago, an American TV channel report revealed that shortly after the October 2023 Hamas-led attacks on Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza, pro-Israel advocacy groups began monitoring US college campuses.

One such group, Betar USA, a self-described Zionist organisation, claimed it compiled dossiers on foreign students and faculty members involved in pro-Palestinian activism and handed this information to federal authorities.

Ross Glick, a key figure behind the initiative, stated that the group’s intelligence was used to identify non-citizen protesters for potential deportation. This aligns with former President Trump’s January executive order aimed at “combating anti-semitism” on college campuses, which permitted the government to seek the removal of individuals accused of participating in so-called “pro-Jihadist protests” or expressing “Hamas sympathies”.

Detentions and deportation proceedings have reportedly begun against some high-profile activists, including Mahmoud Khalil, a protest leader at Columbia University, and Rumeysa Ozturk, a Tufts University doctoral student. Both were detained despite having no criminal charges against them. Civil rights groups have described the actions as discriminatory and politically motivated.

No official statement has yet been issued by the Department of Homeland Security or the US State Department explaining the basis or criteria for these visa cancellations.