The Trump administration has withdrawn visas from hundreds of international students and detained over a dozen, often without advance notice or the opportunity to contest the action.

Viral videos show plainclothes agents arresting students near their residences, sparking fear among foreign scholars.

Inside Higher Ed reports over 80 universities across the US have been affected. Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that more than 300 visas have been annulled, citing activities “contrary to US national interests.”

While some students have minor legal infractions, like speeding or DUI charges, many are linked to pro-Palestinian activism. Immigration attorneys argue that international students are still entitled to free speech protections under the First Amendment.

However, due to their temporary visa status, they’re more vulnerable to deportation. Rubio warned that any foreigner seen as “disruptive” may lose their visa.

A tracker shows that large public schools such as Texas A&M and UC Berkeley, as well as elite institutions like Harvard and Columbia, have seen student visa cancellations.

In several incidents, students were taken by ICE agents and placed in detention facilities, awaiting deportation. Some of them, like Turkish student Rumeysa Ozturk, were visibly distressed during the arrests.

Legal residents and even professors, like Brown University’s Dr. Rasha Alawieh, have also been targeted.

Several lawsuits have been filed, including one by a Dartmouth doctoral student, claiming his visa was revoked without justification or warning.

This sweeping policy shift is now being challenged in court.’