Last Updated
March 22, 2026
Location
Washington, District of Columbia, United States
Type
POLICY
Mass Student Visa Revocations Targeting Muslim Students
Beginning with Executive Order 14188 in January 2025, the Trump administration launched an unprecedented campaign to revoke visas and deport international students engaged in pro-Palestinian activism, disproportionately targeting Muslims. Secretary Rubio's AI-powered 'Catch and Revoke' program used social media surveillance and the Canary Mission doxxing site to identify targets. By May 2025, 4,700+ students had their status terminated. High-profile detentions included Mahmoud Khalil (Columbia, detained 3+ months), Rumeysa Ozturk (Tufts, seized during Ramadan), and Mohsen Mahdawi (arrested at his own citizenship interview). Unsealed depositions revealed Stephen Miller personally directed revocations using Canary Mission. Federal courts repeatedly ruled the campaign unconstitutional, with a landmark AAUP v. Rubio ruling declaring it violated the First Amendment. 200+ university presidents signed a joint resistance statement.
Timeline
January 15, 2026
Landmark Ruling: 'Catch and Revoke' Violates First Amendment
In AAUP v. Rubio, Judge William G. Young declared the administration unconstitutionally targeted noncitizens over their Gaza war protest speech, finding 'Catch and Revoke' violated the First Amendment by targeting protected expression.
SourceJanuary 1, 2026
Judge Rules Ozturk Deportation Groundless
Judge Roopal Patel ruled there were no grounds to deport Ozturk, terminating removal proceedings. The ACLU hailed it as a victory for First Amendment rights of international students.
SourceJuly 10, 2025
Court Reveals Stephen Miller Used Canary Mission to Target Students
Unsealed depositions revealed White House adviser Stephen Miller held 'at least a dozen' conversations directing visa revocations using the anonymous Canary Mission doxxing site, which has suspected ties to Israel. A DHS 'tiger team' reviewed 5,000+ names from the site.
SourceJune 20, 2025
Mahmoud Khalil Released After 3+ Months in Detention
Khalil was released from LaSalle on bail after more than three months. He had missed the birth of his first child while detained. His case continued on appeal.
SourceMay 22, 2025
Federal Judge Issues Nationwide Injunction Blocking Terminations
Judge Jeffrey S. White in Oakland issued a nationwide injunction barring the government from terminating student status, arresting, or transferring students based on visa status, ruling the administration acted 'arbitrarily and capriciously.'
SourceMay 9, 2025
Rumeysa Ozturk Released After Six Weeks in Detention
A Vermont judge ordered Ozturk's immediate release, finding no evidence beyond a campus newspaper op-ed. The ACLU of Massachusetts represented her.
SourceMay 1, 2025
142 Members of Congress Demand Answers
Senator Duckworth, Senator Durbin, and 35 Senate Democrats sent a letter to DHS demanding the administration undo unlawful revocations. A separate House letter gathered 142 signatures.
SourceApril 30, 2025
Federal Judge Orders Release of Mohsen Mahdawi
A Vermont judge ordered Mahdawi's release, finding his detention retaliatory. He later graduated from Columbia with a philosophy degree and publicly stated: 'I am not afraid of you.'
SourceApril 22, 2025
200+ Universities Sign Joint Statement Resisting Crackdown
Over 200 institutions including Harvard, Yale, MIT, Penn, and Princeton signed a letter declaring no government 'should dictate what private universities can teach, whom they can admit, and which areas of inquiry they can pursue.'
SourceApril 18, 2025
ACLU Files Class Action for 100+ Students
The ACLU filed a federal class action representing over 100 students across five states. The ACLU of Michigan stated: 'The timing and uniformity leave little question that DHS adopted a nationwide policy of mass termination.'
SourceApril 17, 2025
901 Students at 128 Universities File Lawsuits
Over 1,000 students had visas revoked or status terminated. At least 901 at 128 colleges filed lawsuits. Revocations disproportionately affected students from Muslim-majority countries.
SourceApril 14, 2025
Columbia Student Arrested at His Own Citizenship Interview
Mohsen Mahdawi, a Palestinian Columbia student and green card holder, was arrested by masked ICE agents at his citizenship naturalization interview in Vermont. He was about to sign the Pledge of Allegiance when agents seized him.
SourceApril 9, 2025
DHS Terminates 4,736 Students' Status Nationwide
DHS announced social media screening for 'antisemitic' content. By this date, ICE had terminated the status of 4,736 students across the country. Many revocations were based on minor infractions like speeding tickets rather than security concerns.
SourceMarch 31, 2025
Cornell Student Self-Deports: 'I Lost Faith'
Momodou Taal left the U.S. voluntarily after a judge denied his deportation block. He stated: 'I have lost faith I could walk the streets without being abducted.' He was later detained by UK police upon return to Britain.
SourceMarch 28, 2025
Rubio Confirms 300+ Visas Revoked in Three Weeks
Rubio confirmed over 300 student visas revoked since 'Catch and Revoke' launched, stating 'I do it every day.' The program uses AI-assisted social media surveillance.
SourceMarch 25, 2025
Tufts PhD Student Seized During Ramadan Iftar Walk
Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish doctoral student at Tufts, was surrounded by plainclothes ICE agents while walking to an Iftar dinner. Her visa had been quietly canceled four days earlier. She was driven through multiple states to a Louisiana detention facility. A judge later found her detention appeared to be retaliation for a campus newspaper op-ed.
SourceMarch 25, 2025
Knight First Amendment Institute Files AAUP v. Rubio
The AAUP and Middle East Studies Association filed suit challenging the administration's policy of deporting noncitizen students and faculty for protected speech.
SourceMarch 19, 2025
Federal Judge Blocks Georgetown Scholar's Deportation
Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles ruled Badar Khan Suri could not be deported, finding his detention violated the First and Fifth Amendments. The government had produced no evidence beyond his political speech and family connections.
SourceMarch 17, 2025
Georgetown Scholar Detained by ICE
ICE detained Badar Khan Suri, an Indian national teaching minority rights at Georgetown's School of Foreign Service, while walking home. DHS accused him of 'spreading Hamas propaganda.' He was transferred to Prairieland Detention Center in Texas.
SourceMarch 14, 2025
Cornell PhD Student's Visa Revoked After Filing Lawsuit
The State Department revoked the visa of Cornell PhD student Momodou Taal, a Gambian-British citizen, days after he became a plaintiff in a federal lawsuit challenging the administration's targeting of pro-Palestinian activists.
SourceMarch 8, 2025
Mahmoud Khalil Arrested by ICE at Columbia Apartment
ICE detained Mahmoud Khalil, a lawful permanent resident and Columbia Gaza Solidarity Encampment lead negotiator, from his campus apartment without a warrant. Despite holding a green card, he was transported to LaSalle Detention Center in Louisiana.
SourceMarch 7, 2025
Rubio Launches AI-Powered 'Catch and Revoke' Program
Secretary Rubio announced the initiative using AI to scan tens of thousands of student visa holders' social media for alleged pro-Hamas sympathies.
SourceJanuary 29, 2025
Trump Signs Executive Order 14188 on Antisemitism
President Trump signed EO 14188 directing agencies to identify and deport non-citizen participants in pro-Palestinian protests. Trump stated: 'To all the resident aliens who joined in the pro-jihadist protests, we put you on notice: come 2025, we will find you, and we will deport you.'
SourceQuick Stats