THE STATE Department has revoked more than 6,000 international student visas because of violations of US law and overstays, the department told the BBC.
The agency said the "vast majority" of the violations
were assault, driving under the influence (DUI), burglary and "support for
terrorism".
The move comes as the Trump administration continues its crackdown
on immigration and international students.
While the State Department did not specify what they meant by
"support for terrorism", the Trump administration has targeted some
students who have protested in support of Palestine, arguing they had expressed
antisemitic behaviour.
Of the 6,000 student visas that were revoked, the State Department
said about 4,000 of those were revoked because visitors broke the law.
Another 200-300 visas were also revoked for "terrorism done
under INA 3B", the State Department said, referring to code that defines
"terrorist activity" broadly as acts that endanger human life or
violate US law.
Earlier this year, the Trump administration paused scheduling visa
appointments for international students. In June, when they restarted
appointments, they announced they would ask all applicants to make their social
media accounts public for enhanced screening.
They said they would search for "any indications of hostility
toward the citizens, culture, government, institutions, or founding principles
of the United States".
State Department officers were also instructed to screen for those
"who advocate for, aid, or support designated foreign terrorists and other
threats to national security; or who perpetrate unlawful anti-Semitic
harassment or violence".
Secretary of State Marco Rubio told lawmakers in May that he
estimated "thousands" of student visas had been rescinded since
January.
"I don't know the latest count, but we probably have more to
do," Rubio told US lawmakers on 20 May. "We're going to continue to
revoke the visas of people who are here as guests and are disrupting our higher
education facilities."
Democrats have pushed back against the Trump administration's
effort to revoke student visas, describing it is an attack on due process.
More than 1.1 million international students from over 210
countries were enrolled in US colleges in the 2023-24 school year, according to
Open Doors, an organisation that collects data on foreign students.