Student Protests at Columbia Trigger Visa Revocations

Immigration officials announced the arrest of Leqaa Kordia and revocation of Ranjani Srinivasan's visa, participants in Pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University. Kordia, a Palestinian, was detained for overstaying her visa, which was ended for lack of attendance. Srinivasan, labeled a terrorism advocate, chose self-deportation.

In a crackdown on student activities, immigration officials have detained a second participant involved in Pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University and revoked another's visa, they announced on Friday.

Leqaa Kordia, identified as a Palestinian from the West Bank, was arrested for overstaying her student visa, according to the Department of Homeland Security. Kordia's visa had been revoked in January 2022 for a failure to attend classes, officials said. Previously, she was arrested for her role in protests at Columbia in April 2024.

In a similar action, the Trump administration nullified the visa of Ranjani Srinivasan, an Indian doctoral student, on March 5 for allegedly advocating violence and terrorism. Srinivasan chose self-deportation following the revocation. The crackdown follows Mahmoud Khalil's arrest, a Palestinian activist who aided in organizing the student protests and now faces deportation.

(With inputs from agencies.)