Judge Grants Bail to Pro-Palestine Student Ozturk as US Campus Crackdown Escalates

By Staff, Agencies

A federal judge granted bail and ordered the immediate release of Tufts University student and pro-Palestine activist Rumeysa Ozturk from Louisiana immigration detention, amid a nationwide escalation of crackdowns on campus protests across the US.

Ozturka, a Turkish doctoral student, was held by US immigration authorities since March 25, when plainclothes Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officers detained her during a walk in her Somerville, Massachusetts neighborhood.

The Tufts University doctoral candidate remained confined in a Louisiana detention center until her recent release.

During Friday’s bail hearing, US District Judge William Sessions strongly affirmed that Ozturk presented compelling arguments regarding constitutional violations in her case.

The judge emphasized that her detention raised ”very substantial” concerns about First Amendment freedoms and due process rights, particularly given the politically charged revocation of her student visa under the Trump administration.

The Trump administration revoked her visa and initiated deportation proceedings based on an op-ed she co-wrote for Tufts University’s student paper.

 A senior DHS official, Andre Watson, justified the action in a memo to the State Department, citing her “anti-'Israel' activism” and specifically referencing her article urging Tufts to disclose its investments and divest from companies with direct or indirect ties to "Israel."

Sessions, however, said “There is absolutely no evidence that she has engaged in violence or advocated violence.

“She has no criminal record. She has done nothing other than essentially attend her university and expand her contacts within the community in such a supportive way.”

In a swift rebuke of Judge Sessions’ decision, the Trump administration reaffirmed its stance on Ozturk’s case.

Upon her release, Ozturk was greeted by cheering supporters, including representatives from her Service Employees International Union (SEIU).