Turkish student detained by ICE while heading to Ramadan meal
4 Min Read
Though unconfirmed, reports suggest Ozturk’s pro-Palestinian activism may have played a role in her detention.
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Hundreds of people gather in Somerville, Mass., on March 26, 2025, to demand the release of Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish student at Tufts University, who was arrested by federal agents Tuesday night. (AP)
A disturbing video shows the moment Rumeysa Ozturk, a 30-year-old Turkish doctoral student at Tufts University, was apprehended by federal agents near her off-campus residence in Massachusetts on Tuesday evening. The incident occurred as she was reportedly en route to an Iftar meal to break her Ramadan fast.
In the footage, six masked individuals wearing gold badges surround Ozturk, who is visibly distraught and heard screaming as two men approach her. "We're the police," one declares, while a bystander shouts, "Why are you hiding your faces?" The agents handcuff her, seize her backpack, and escort her to a black SUV.
🚨URGENT: MPAC demands the immediate release of Rumeysa Ozturk, a Tufts student and F-1 visa holder abducted by DHS agents with no charges—on her way to an Iftar.
— MPAC (@mpac_national) March 26, 2025
This is a chilling violation of civil liberties during Ramadan.
📢 Speak out. Call your Reps. #freerumeysa pic.twitter.com/qqLKJOhCVL
Attorney Mahsa Khanbabai confirmed Ozturk was detained by Homeland Security agents, though "no charges have been filed against Rumeysa to date that we are aware of." Tufts University stated it had no prior knowledge of the arrest, with President Sunil Kumar clarifying in an email: "The university ... did not share any information with federal authorities prior to the event."
While Khanbabai maintains Ozturk held a valid student visa, Tufts officials said they were informed her visa had been "terminated". Kumar noted the school is "seeking to confirm whether that information is true." US District Judge Indira Talwani ordered the government to justify Ozturk’s detention by Friday and barred her transfer outside Massachusetts without 48 hours' advance notice.
The incident has raised concerns over potential targeting due to Ozturk’s pro-Palestine activism, though authorities have not disclosed the reason for her detention.
Trump's escalating crackdown on pro-Palestine activism
The detention of Turkish doctoral student Rumeysa Ozturk by ICE agents as she headed to a Ramadan iftar meal marks the latest in a series of aggressive US actions against pro-Palestine voices. This incident chillingly mirrors the 2023 arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian student activist detained under questionable circumstances.
Under the Trump administration's expanding "counterterrorism" policies, federal agencies have increasingly targeted Muslim and pro-Palestine students, citing alleged "national security concerns." Khalil's case—where he was held for weeks without formal charges—set a dangerous precedent now being replicated with Ozturk's detention.
Pro-'Israel' group in US says reported ‘thousands’ on deportation list
A far-right group that took credit for the arrest of a Palestinian activist and permanent US resident—whom the Trump administration is seeking to deport—claims to have submitted "thousands of names" for similar action, The Guardian reported on March 14.
Betar US is among several right-wing, pro-"Israel" organizations backing and instigating the Trump administration’s crackdown on international students involved in pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses. This campaign escalated further with the recent arrest of Mahmoud Khalil.
At the time, Trump described Khalil’s arrest as "the first of many to come," while Betar US swiftly took credit on social media, stating it had provided Khalil’s name to authorities.
Betar declared that it had "been working on deportations and will continue to do so," threatening that the effort would extend beyond immigrants.
“Expect naturalized citizens to start being picked up within the month,” the group posted on X.
The group has compiled a so-called "deportation list" identifying individuals it claims are in the US on visas and have participated in pro-Palestine demonstrations.
Betar spokesperson Daniel Levy told The Guardian that the group had submitted "thousands of names" of students and faculty—allegedly on visas—from institutions including Columbia University, the University of Pennsylvania, UCLA, and Syracuse University to Trump administration officials.
The group claims to possess "documentation, including tapes, social media and more" to support its actions. It says it has shared names with high-ranking officials such as Secretary of State Marco Rubio, White House Homeland Security Adviser Stephen Miller, and Attorney General Pam Bondi.
As "Israel's" war on Gaza continues, the US appears to be criminalizing solidarity—with Ozturk potentially becoming the next Khalil in a dangerous pattern of suppressing dissent.
Read more: ICE secretly moved Mahmoud Khalil in retaliation: The Intercept
