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yesterday

Federal Judge Orders Release of Tufts Student Detained Over Gaza Op-Ed

Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish PhD student, was granted bail after six weeks in ICE custody, with the judge citing constitutional concerns over her detention for protected speech.

Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish doctoral student at Tufts University in Somerville, Massachusetts, poses in an undated photograph provided by her family and obtained by Reuters on March 29, 2025. Courtesy of the Ozturk family/Handout via REUTERS NO RESALES. NO ARCHIVES. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY/File Photo
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A sign stands at the edge of the main campus of Tufts University, in Medford, Massachusetts, U.S., April 29, 2025. REUTERS/Taylor Coester/File Photo

Overview

  • Judge William Sessions ruled that Rumeysa Ozturk's detention violated her First Amendment and due process rights, ordering her immediate release on bail.
  • The government provided no evidence beyond an op-ed critical of Israel’s actions in Gaza to justify revoking her visa and detaining her.
  • Ozturk, detained since March 25, suffered worsening asthma attacks in unsanitary conditions at a Louisiana ICE facility, prompting urgent legal action for her release.
  • Her case highlights the Trump administration's broader efforts to revoke visas and deport international students engaged in pro-Palestinian activism.
  • Ozturk can now return to Massachusetts and participate in her ongoing legal and deportation proceedings remotely, as ordered by the court.