Latest news with #RumeysaÖztürk
Yahoo
10-05-2025
- Yahoo
Tufts student Rumeysa Öztürk released from ICE custody
Tufts University student Rumeysa Öztürk who had been held since she was detained by immigration agents in March was freed from ICE custody, hours after a federal judge ordered her release. 'Thank you so much. I am a little bit tired, so I will take some time to rest," Öztürk said.
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Judge orders Tufts student Rumeysa Öztürk to be released 'immediately' from ICE custody
A federal judge in Vermont on Friday ordered that Rumeysa Öztürk, the Tufts University student detained by immigration agents in March, be released from ICE custody. "Öztürk is free to return to her home in Massachusetts. She's also free to travel to Massachusetts and Vermont as she sees fit, and I am not going to put a travel restriction on her, because, frankly, I don't find that she poses any risk of flight," Judge William K. Sessions III said. The government was ordered to immediately release her, pending further proceedings on the merits of her habeas petition, the judge said. Öztürk appeared virtually, with her attorney Mahsa Khanbabai, from the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center. Khanbabai said she was "relieved and ecstatic" by the news. "Unfortunately, it is 45 days too late. She has been imprisoned all these days for simply writing an op-ed that called for human rights and dignity for the people in Palestine," she said in a statement. "When did speaking up against oppression become a crime? When did speaking up against genocide become something to be imprisoned for?" Öztürk was detained on the streets of a Boston suburb on March 25. Video of her arrest showed officers with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and immigration authorities surrounding her on a sidewalk and grabbing her wrists. She screamed as she was led to a nearby SUV. The Trump administration revoked Öztürk's student visa in late March based on an assessment from the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement that she "had been involved in associations that 'may undermine U.S. foreign policy by creating a hostile environment for Jewish students and indicating support for a designated terrorist organization.'" It included her co-writing an op-ed "that found common cause with an organization that was later temporarily banned from campus, the Bureau of Consular Affairs approved revocation, effectively immediately," according to a State Department memo. Öztürk wrote an op-ed last year in her student newspaper that was critical of Tufts' response to the war in Gaza. Earlier in her bail hearing, Öztürk had an asthma attack. She had testified that the frequency, length, and intensity of her asthma attacks have increased since her detainment. She told the judge that it has been negatively affecting her. The doctoral student from Turkey had previously detailed her attacks in a declaration filed with the court. Attorney Jessie Rossman, who appeared in person for the hearing, told the judge that her client has had more attacks beyond the eight documented in the declaration. Rossman said she was "relieved" her client would soon be able to return to Massachusetts. "For 45 days, Rümeysa has been detained in Louisiana — over 1300 miles from her friends, her community, and her lawyers. During that time, she has suffered regular and escalating asthma attacks," she said in a statement. "And at the same time, the government has failed to produce any justification for her detention." During her testimony, Öztürk said that she was diagnosed with asthma in 2023 in her hometown in Turkey and had experienced attacks before her detainment. During an episode, she said she experiences anxiety, exhaustion, chest tightness and coughing. They are usually brought on by environmental triggers as well as stress. Tufts University medical center has helped her maintain her asthma, she said, noting that she has two inhalers, one for daily maintenance and another she uses when she has an attack. Öztürk appeared to get upset as she testified about an attack at the Atlanta airport after she was detained. She was seen putting her hands over her chest and taking a deep breath. "I was afraid, and I was crying," she told the court about the Atlanta incident. After her testimony, Dr. Jessica McCannon, who has expertise in treating asthma, was called to the stand. While McCannon was speaking, Öztürk began coughing uncontrollably and appeared out of breath. Attorney Khanbabai, who was with Öztürk, said her client was having an asthma attack. Öztürk rushed out of the room to get her inhaler. This article was originally published on
NBC News
09-05-2025
- Health
- NBC News
Tufts student Rumeysa Öztürk ordered to be released 'immediately' from ICE custody by judge
Rumeysa Öztürk, the Tufts University student detained by immigration agents in March, was ordered to be released from ICE custody following a hearing Friday. "Ozturk is free to return to her home in Massachusetts. She's also free to travel to Massachusetts and Vermont as she sees fit, and I am not going to put a travel restriction on her, because, frankly, I don't find that she poses any risk of flight," the judge said. The government was ordered to release her from custody immediately, pending further proceedings in this court on the merits of her habeas petition, the judge said. Before the judge ordered her free, Öztürk, who appeared remotely from the South Louisiana ICE Processing Center, had an asthma attack. She had testified that the frequency, length, and intensity of her asthma attacks have increased since her detainment. She told the judge that it has been negatively affecting her. The doctoral student from Turkey had previously detailed her attacks in a declaration filed with the court. Attorney Jessie Rossman, who appeared in person for the hearing in Vermont, told the judge that her client has had more attacks beyond the eight documented in the declaration. "She has been detained, experienced numerous asthma attacks, all because she wrote an op-ed," Rossman said, who asked that the court immediately grant bail. During her testimony, Öztürk said that she was diagnosed with asthma in 2023 in her hometown in Turkey and had experienced attacks before her detainment. During an episode, she said she experiences anxiety, exhaustion, chest tightness, and coughing. They are usually brought on by environmental triggers as well as stress. Tufts University medical center has helped her maintain her asthma, she said, noting that she has two inhalers, one for daily maintenance and another she uses when she has an attack. Öztürk appeared to get upset as she testified about an attack at the Atlanta airport after she was detained on the streets of a Boston suburb on March 25. She was seen putting her hands over her chest and taking a deep breath. "I was afraid, and I was crying," she told the court about the Atlanta incident. After her testimony, Dr. Jessica McCannon, who has expertise in treating asthma, was called to the stand. While McCannon was speaking, Öztürk began coughing uncontrollably and appeared out of breath. Attorney Mahsa Khanbabai, who was with Öztürk, said her client was having an asthma attack. Öztürk rushed out of the room to get her inhaler. The Trump administration revoked Öztürk's student visa in late March based on an assessment from the Department of Homeland Security and Immigration and Customs Enforcement that she "had been involved in associations that 'may undermine U.S. foreign policy by creating a hostile environment for Jewish students and indicating support for a designated terrorist organization.'" It included her co-authoring an op-ed "that found common cause with an organization that was later temporarily banned from campus, the Bureau of Consular Affairs approved revocation, effectively immediately," according to a State Department memo. Öztürk wrote an op-ed last year in her student newspaper that was critical of Tufts' response to the war in Gaza.
Fox News
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Fox News
Court orders Tufts University student be quickly moved to ICE custody in Vermont, denies government appeal
Federal appeals judges on Wednesday ruled a Turkish Tufts University student currently being held by immigration authorities in Louisiana should be quickly transferred to Vermont, to address what her attorney's claim is unlawful detention for co-authoring a pro-Hamas op-ed in her student newspaper. The Trump administration had requested the transfer be halted. Rumeysa Öztürk, 30, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on March 26 near an off-campus apartment building in Somerville, Massachusetts, after her visa was revoked by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Her attorney, Esha Bhandari, argued Öztürk's claims do not focus on the potential ICE removal, but on unlawful detention in retaliation for expressing her views in accordance with the First Amendment right to free speech — stating her arguments need to be heard immediately. FEDERAL JUDGE RULES TRUMP ADMINISTRATION CANNOT IMMEDIATELY DEPORT TUFTS STUDENT Bhandari said Öztürk has been held in custody for six weeks and her health has deteriorated. The decision seemingly sides with Öztürk, whose attorney previously said the Trump administration was "forum shopping," by having ICE move her to Louisiana, where courts' rulings may be less favorable to her case. The U.S. Attorney's Office argued the reason for the transfer was limited holding space in Massachusetts prior to the trial, Fox News Digital previously reported. JUDGE BLOCKS TRUMP ADMIN'S BID TO MOVE TUFTS STUDENT CASE TO LOUISIANA; SENDS IT TO VERMONT Officials noted Öztürk, a doctoral student at Tufts, was sent to Vermont before being moved to Louisiana within 24 hours. The three-judge panel ruled that since the district court's original transfer deadline passed, the government must comply with the transfer within one week. Öztürk, who DHS officials accused of supporting Hamas, co-authored an op-ed in the university student newspaper, criticizing the university's response to Israel's war in Gaza and calling on the university to divest from Israel. Prior to her arrest, she had a valid F-1 visa status and there were no charges against her, Öztürk's attorneys previously told Fox News. An executive order was signed by President Donald Trump in January to retract Hamas supporters' student visas amid an "unprecedented wave of vile anti-semitic discrimination, vandalism, and violence against our citizens, especially in our schools and on our campuses," Fox News Digital previously reported. CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP The White House, ICE and DHS did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital's requests for comment. Fox News Digital's Louis Casiano contributed to this report.
Bloomberg
07-05-2025
- Politics
- Bloomberg
Appeals Court Orders Transfer of Tufts University Grad Student
A federal appeals court on Wednesday ordered US immigration authorities to transfer a Turkish graduate student from a Louisiana lockup to Vermont, where a judge plans to hear her request for release while she fights possible deportation. The ruling comes after a federal judge in Vermont ordered Rumeysa Öztürk, a Tufts University doctoral student, returned to the state where she'd been detained following her March arrest in Boston. The government, which moved her to an immigration facility in Louisiana, appealed that order, arguing her request for bail would interfere with immigration proceedings. Öztürk claims she's being targeted for an op-ed she co-wrote supporting the people of Gaza more than a year before her arrest.
