BOSTON (Diya TV) — A Tufts University doctoral student from Turkey, detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) since March, was denied bond this week by a Louisiana immigration judge who ruled she posed both a flight risk and a danger to the community. The ruling comes amid allegations that her detention is political retaliation for co-authoring a pro-Palestinian op-ed.
Rumeysa Ozturk, 30, a PhD candidate in child development, was arrested on March 25 by masked federal agents in plain clothes while walking near her apartment in Somerville, Mass., according to court filings and video of the arrest. Within 24 hours, she was transported through several states and transferred to an ICE detention center in Basile, Louisiana, where she has remained for over three weeks.
Ozturk’s attorneys argue her arrest and continued detention stem from a one-paragraph State Department memo that revoked her student visa. The March 21 memo cited an assessment that she had engaged in associations “that may undermine U.S. foreign policy by creating a hostile environment for Jewish students and indicating support for a designated terrorist organization,” referencing her co-authorship of an op-ed in The Tufts Daily. That article criticized the university’s response to student demands for acknowledgment of the Palestinian genocide and divestment from companies tied to Israel.
Immigration Judge denied bond to Ozturk during a hearing Wednesday, according to a statement from her attorneys. The government presented only the State Department memo as evidence to justify her detention, they said.
“This is a complete violation of due process and the rule of law,” her attorney Marty Rosenbluth said in a statement. “The government’s entire case is based on an op-ed—an act of free speech protected under the Constitution.”
Ozturk has not been charged with any crime. A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson previously alleged, without providing specific evidence, that Ozturk had engaged in activities supporting Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization. Her legal team strongly denies those claims and says there is no evidence linking her to any banned groups.
In an April court filing, Ozturk described harsh conditions inside the Louisiana detention center. She said she shares a cell with 23 other women despite it being designed for 14, and detailed irregular mealtimes and long stretches of confinement without communication. She has also experienced five asthma attacks since her detention, her lawyers said in a recent filing.
Ozturk’s legal team is now asking U.S. District Judge William Sessions in Vermont to take jurisdiction over her case. They argue that moving the case from Louisiana to Vermont would enable better communication with her legal team and allow a medical evaluation. A previous hearing was held in Vermont earlier this month, and the judge has barred her deportation until a decision is made.
“We didn’t know where she was for hours after the arrest. She wasn’t allowed to speak to a lawyer for more than 24 hours,” Rosenbluth said. “She just wants to go back to Tufts and finish her degree. She’s done nothing wrong.”
Ozturk is among a growing list of international students affiliated with American universities who have faced visa revocations, detentions, or travel restrictions after participating in demonstrations or making public statements in support of Palestinian rights. A recent immigration court ruling also upheld the deportation of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University student, based on similar national security claims.
While the Biden administration has not commented directly on Ozturk’s case, civil rights advocates are raising alarms over what they describe as politically motivated enforcement targeting student activists. The American Civil Liberties Union and other legal groups have warned that such actions may violate constitutional protections, including freedom of speech and due process.
Judge Sessions has not yet ruled on whether to take control of the case. Ozturk’s lawyers are asking the court to transfer her to Vermont by Friday and hold a hearing next week.
