| Part of theactivist deportations in the second Trump presidency | |
_(cropped).jpg) Rümeysa Öztürk addresses reporters at press conference following her release from detention (May 12, 2025). | |
| Date | March 25, 2025 |
|---|---|
| Location | Somerville, Massachusetts, United States |
| Cause | Criticism of Israel'swar in Gaza |
| Participants | Department of Homeland Security,U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement |
| Outcome | Release onbail |
| Arrests | Rümeysa Öztürk |
On March 25, 2025, following the revocation of herF-1 student visa, 30-year-oldTurkish national andTufts University student Rümeysa Öztürk was arrested by six maskedplainclothes agents from theUnited States Department of Homeland Security (DHS)Somerville, Massachusetts, before eventually being held inSouth Louisiana ICE Processing Center.
Öztürk's arrest sparked condemnation from elected officials and others. Some accused theTrump administration of targeting students for their political views without due process, while others called it a violation ofcivil liberties. The incident also provokedprotests at Tufts University and across Massachusetts.
On May 9, Öztürk was released pending final decision on her legal case over her detention.
Öztürk, a 30-year-old Turkish national, is aPhD student atTufts University with an F-1 student visa.[1][2] HerLinkedIn profile, which has since been deleted, included a master's degree from Columbia University and experience as research assistant atBoston University and as aFulbright Scholar.[1][3]
In March 2024, Öztürk and three others co-wrote an opinion piece entitled "Try again, President Kumar: Renewing calls for Tufts to adopt March 4 TCU Senate resolutions" that was published in the university's newspaperThe Tufts Daily.[4] The article called for Tufts to divest from companies with ties to Israel and acknowledge "Palestinian genocide".[5] The editorial was endorsed by 32 others.[6][7] Following this, her personal information was made public byCanary Mission, a group that documents those whom it disapproves of.[5]
The groupStopAntisemitism claimed that, while at Tufts, Öztürk had led violent events in support of Hamas and in opposition to Israel and the U. S.[8] Her brother denied this on social media. Her friends had said the only pro-Palestinian activity she had engaged in was the op-ed.[5] After her detention, both her associates at Tufts and her department at the university paid tribute to her character.[9]
TheWashington Post reported that Öztürk's visa was revoked at the discretion ofSecretary of State Marco Rubio and without her knowledge in the weeks prior to her arrest.The Post also reported that while the initial grounds for the action had been antisemitism or expressing support for a terror organisation like Hamas, no evidence was provided to substantiate the allegations.[10]
On March 25, Öztürk was arrested by six plainclothes officers as she left her home to meet friends to break their Ramadan fast. The officers, mostly masked, quickly moved up to her, whereupon they identified themselves as police and took away her phone and backpack. A bystander initially believed the incident to be a kidnapping.[11][12][13] In a later sworn statement, Öztürk said that she initially believed she had been abducted by associates of the Canary Mission, and that when it was made clear that she had been arrested by law enforcement she was not told why. During this time she was shackled and denied access to a lawyer. One of the officers later told her that she would be transported a detention center in Vermont, as there were none in Massachusetts for women.[14][15]
Öztürk was subsequently moved several times, including to Vermont, before eventually arriving at theSouth Louisiana ICE Processing Center. She claimed she was questioned while sleep-deprived, mistreated after suffering asthma attacks, and kept in an overcrowded cell in unsanitary conditions during this process.[16][17][18] She also said that she was kept entirely indoors for the first week of her detention and that she had limited food and water for two weeks.[19][20]
Representatives of the Turkish government visited Öztürk while in detention to provide consular support and attempt to secure her release.[21] In April a Congressional delegation, led by Louisiana RepresentativeTroy Carter, visited Öztürk and another pro-Palestinian protestor who had been detained,Mahmoud Khalil. Reporting on the conditions the two were kept in, the delegation described pair as "political prisoners" and noted that both detainees complained of low temperatures as well a lack of medical care, food and religious accommodation.[22] ICE officials would later deny these claims.[23]
Öztürk's location was unknown to anyone but the authorities, in the initial 24 hours following her arrest, including her lawyer. Her movement out of Massachusetts also appeared to contravene an order issued by a US District judge not to be removed within the first 48 hours of her arrest.[24] The US government claimed that, because of a lack of beds, ICE had already planned to move Öztürk to Louisiana prior to her arrest and that the District court had no jurisdiction over federal immigration actions.[25] Legal representatives for both sides disputed where Öztürk's petition to be released should be heard, with District Judge Denise J. Casper eventually ruling that this would take place in Vermont, and that an earlier ruling barring her deportation would remain in effect.[26]
| Ozturk v. Hyde | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Court | United States District Court for the District of Vermont |
| Started | April 4, 2025 |
| Docket nos. | 2:25-cv-00374, transferred from1:25-cv-10695 |
| Court membership | |
| Judge sitting | William K. Sessions (transferred fromDenise Jefferson Casper) |
Öztürk was released on bail in May after US District Judge,William K Sessions, ordered her immediate release without restrictions. During the hearing Sessions highlighted that no evidence had been presented to support her detention, and that continued detention was likely to be detrimental to her health.[27]
Following her release from detention, Öztürk thanked her supporters.[28] At a press conference at Logan Airport in Boston, Öztürk stated her intention to continue her legal battle against her initial detention and to return to her studies.[29]
Legal proceedings are ongoing in Vermont regarding claims of illegal detention and in Louisiana regarding immigration hearings.[30][31]
In the days following the arrest, the university confirmed it had no prior knowledge of the impending action and that it was later only informed of the arrest of a student whose visa had been rescinded. The university also stated that it was disturbed by the footage of the arrest, and that it supported both Muslim students and the wider community.[32] Tufts would later make a submission in support of her release, stating that her arrest had been detrimental to the university's international community.[33]
Following her release in May, a university spokesperson gave a statement supporting the outcome and that the university was looking forward to welcoming her back. The statement also re-affirmed that the initial op-ed Öztürk co-wrote violated no university policies.[34]
Öztürk's arrest and detention led to a number of protests calling for her release. This included protests at Tufts and Harvard,[35][36] outside the Vermont courthouse where her case was being decided,[37] and a banner being held up during a Major League Soccer game.[38] One protest in downtown Boston involved more than 200, including MayorMichelle Wu,Massachusetts Attorney GeneralAndrea Campbell, and the president of her Service Employees International Union branch David Foley.[39]
A group of 27 Jewish organizations andsynagogues across the US condemned Öztürk's arrest, stating it violated her constitutional rights. They also accused the government of "exploiting" concerns around antisemitism in the process.[40]
US House representativesAyanna Pressley andRashida Tlaib, condemned her detention and accused theTrump administration of attacking freedoms and increasing government repression.[41] Both Massachusetts senators,Elizabeth Warren andEd Markey, issued a joint statement demanding that she be provided appropriate medical care and that the government either provide evidence to justify her detention or release her.[42] Several Turkish politicians also condemned her detention, includingYılmaz Tunç, the Turkish minister of justice,[43]Özgür Özel, leader of theRepublican People's Party, andAli Babacan, leader of theDemocracy and Progress Party.[44][45]
