Tufts University PhD student Rumeysa Ozturk has been welcomed home to Massachusetts after enduring more than six weeks of detention by U.S. immigration officials.
Turkish national Ozturk was greeted by Massachusetts Senator Edward Markey and Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley at Boston Logan International Airport on Saturday.
Her release came after a federal judge in Vermont ordered her immediate release from a detention facility in Louisiana.
The 30-year-old was taken off the streets by masked ICE (U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement) agents on March 8, shortly after co-authoring an editorial in The Tufts Daily calling on the university to divest from Israel due to its role in the genocide in Gaza.
The U.S. government accused Ozturk of engaging in “activities in support of Hamas” and claimed her actions created a “hostile environment for Jewish students,” potentially undermining U.S. foreign policy.
Her student visa was revoked on March 21 without prior notification, under a provision of the Immigration and Nationality Act allowing deportation for activities deemed to have “adverse foreign policy consequences.”
The arrest sparked national outrage, with human rights groups and academics accusing authorities of silencing dissent through unlawful detention.
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At a press conference in Boston, Ozturk said: “Thank you everyone for all your support and love. I came to the United States to pursue my doctoral studies, learn and grow as a scholar, and also to contribute to a global community.”
She added: “Please don’t forget about all the wonderful women in the immigration and financial system.”
Civil rights groups have criticised the Trump administration’s immigration enforcement tactics, saying Ozturk’s case reflects systemic abuse targeting international students and Muslims.
Congresswoman Pressley condemned the detention as a “shameful injustice,” adding: “Their efforts to silence Rumeysa, crush dissent and undermine our constitutional rights are being rejected.”
Senator Markey said: “Rumeysa should have never been abducted off the streets of Somerville or sent 1,500 miles away to Louisiana. She suffered intolerable living conditions and multiple asthma attacks while in custody. Her release is only the beginning of the fight for justice.”
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), America’s largest Muslim civil rights group, also welcomed her release.
CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said: “We welcome the court’s decision to order the immediate release of political prisoner Rumeysa Ozturk. If ICE could get away with abducting and deporting a lawful permanent resident for writing an editorial critical of a foreign government’s genocide, then free speech in America would be dead.”
CAIR further condemned the removal of Ozturk’s hijab during detention and previously called for urgent medical treatment after she suffered repeated asthma attacks in unsanitary and unsafe conditions.
Ozturk’s legal team, backed by the ACLU of Massachusetts, lawmakers, and human rights organisations, is now calling for the full restoration of her visa and academic rights.
Her case continues to draw national attention, with activists demanding broader immigration reform and an end to the political targeting of Muslim voices.
“I am so excited to get back to my students,” said Ozturk. “I’m ready to resume teaching and contributing to my community.”
Her supporters say justice will not be served until those responsible for her unlawful detention are held accountable and protections are put in place to prevent future abuses.
