ICE disputes lawmakers’ claims about Rumeysa Ozturk’s detention conditions

Federal immigration officials have strongly disputed claims made by Massachusetts lawmakers regarding the treatment of two detained university students, highlighting growing tensions over immigration enforcement under the Trump administration.

Detention center visit sparks controversy

Senator Edward J. Markey and Representatives Ayanna S. Pressley and Jim P. McGovern, all Democrats from Massachusetts, visited a Louisiana detention center last week where Tufts Ph.D. student Rumeysa Ozturk and Columbia student Mahmoud Khalil are being held after their visas were revoked in March.

Following the visit, the lawmakers described what they called “harrowing” and “appalling” conditions at the facility in a joint statement and subsequent New York Times op-ed.

“Rumeysa herself shared the story of having to wait three days, despite repeated requests, simply for toilet paper. And you can’t even get an extra blanket at night when you are cold,” Rep. Pressley said at a press conference at Boston Logan Airport. “The cruelty is the point.”

The lawmakers alleged that Ozturk was “inadequately fed, kept in facilities with extremely cold temperatures, and denied personal necessities and religious accommodations.” They also claimed she was denied prescribed asthma medication.

However, Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials called these allegations “unequivocally false” in a statement to The Crimson.

A senior Department of Homeland Security official countered that Ozturk was connected with her lawyer “within hours of her arrival at the facility,” and that “daily inspections are conducted by the facility administrator, and there have been no reports or documented complaints of rodent activity.”

The official also stated that “ICE has provided Ms. Ozturk with prompt medical care and services, and she has not filed any grievances regarding delayed medical care.”

The Louisiana facility where Ozturk is detained has previously faced criticism. A 2024 study by the American Civil Liberties Union and immigrant advocacy groups reported “widespread abuse” in Louisiana’s immigration facilities, claiming they “routinely fail to comply with ICE’s minimal standards of care.”

In a significant development, a federal judge recently ordered the government to return Ozturk to Vermont by May 1, though it remains unclear how this will affect her immigration status.

The DHS official defended the administration’s approach to international student visas, stating, “Being granted a visa to live and study in the United States is a privilege, not a right. The State Department makes specific determinations about visa revocations when an individual poses a threat to national security.”

The lawmakers characterized the situation differently in their statement: “The Trump administration is using taxpayer money to detain people without charge and fund abuses that DHS’s inspector general has well documented.”

Broader implications for international students

Rep. Pressley emphasized the humanity of those detained, saying, “The women that I met are mothers, daughters, sisters, wives, artists, teachers, and activists. They are humiliated daily, degraded, and denied the necessities of any human being.”

This case comes amid broader tensions over international student visas. While the State Department recently restored visas for several Harvard students and alumni after initially revoking them, thousands of international students nationwide still face visa renewal challenges.

The Massachusetts lawmakers framed these actions as going beyond immigration enforcement, writing, “This is not immigration enforcement. This is repression. This is authoritarianism.”