International students sue over Trump admin revoking visas

International students whose visas have been revoked are suing the Trump administration over an alleged violation of due process. 

The Associated Press reported the students are arguing that the Trump administration lacked justification when canceling visas.

President Donald Trump has pursued a crackdown on immigration that initially focused on those in the U.S. illegally. However, several international students have been caught in the crosshairs as the administration argues their pro-Palestinian activism constitutes support for Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization. Meanwhile, other international students have reportedly had their visas revoked for past infractions such as traffic violations, according to the AP.

Students in at least 30 states have had their visas revoked, according to NBC News, which said the government is using a foreign policy statute from 1952 to justify the cancelations. 

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One of the most prominent cases is that of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University student who was involved in anti-Israel activity at the school. Last week, a judge ruled that the government met the burden of proof to deport Khalil. Attorneys for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said Khalil was not forthcoming about his involvement with certain organizations or his work with the United Nations Relief and Works Agency.

International students looking to study in the U.S. must meet several requirements to obtain a specific visa that allows them to attend school. According to the State Department, the type of school and course of study the student wishes to pursue determines which visa they need.  

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DHS lists several circumstances under which the government may revoke a student visa, including absence from the U.S. for five months or longer, expulsion, unauthorized employment and failure to enroll, among others.

International students have been allowed to maintain their legal residency status and continue their studies even after having their visas revoked, according to the AP. In those cases, the lack of a visa only impacted their ability to travel in and out of the U.S. According to the AP, losing legal residency status is what ultimately puts students at risk of being deported.

Trump administration officials have defended the revocation of student visas, stating that the government reserves the right to cancel them.

“There is no right to a student visa.  We can cancel a student visa under the law just the same way that we can deny a student visa under the law. And we will do so in cases we find appropriate,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio told reporters on March 28.

Fox News Digital reached out to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services for comment on the lawsuits.

Fox News Digital’s Sarah Rumpf-Whitten and Brooke Taylor contributed to this report.