US State Department declines to explain visa revocation of Turkish student

WASHINGTON

The US State Department on Thursday refused to comment on the reasons behind the visa cancellation of Turkish student Rumeysa Ozturk, citing ongoing legal proceedings.

Responding to Anadolu's question during a press briefing, spokesperson Tammy Bruce said the department would not discuss matters under judicial review.

"I will not, as many of you already know, I will not speak about something that's in the courts, that's being adjudicated," Bruce told reporters.

"The DHS, which manages this framework, clearly felt that she had committed crimes that required her detention, and now that will be adjudicated in court," Bruce said. "But it's a framework that we would not be commenting on in any regard, regardless of the situation or whom it happens to, as you've noted, it is playing out in court with representatives, and that's where, that's where is there."

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Thursday confirmed the revocation of the visa of Turkish student Rumeysa Ozturk, and defended her arrest following her article criticizing Israel.

"We revoked her visa," Rubio told a news conference in Guyana, referring to Ozturk's F1 student visa. "We give you a visa to come and study and get a degree, not to become a social activist that tears up our university campuses."

However, Rubio did not provide any evidence linking Ozturk to violence.

Ozturk, 30, a Turkish PhD student at Tufts University and Fulbright scholar, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) late Tuesday near her home in Somerville, Massachusetts while heading to an iftar dinner.

Her lawyer and family say she was arrested following a campaign by Canary Mission, a pro-Israel website that blacklists pro-Palestine students and activists, stemming from an article she wrote in 2024 criticizing Israel.

No charges have been filed against Ozturk, according to her lawyer. A viral video captured the moments of her detention, showing masked individuals handcuffing her and forcibly taking away her phone.