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Tufts student Rumeysa Ozturk detained by federal officials

Tufts student Rumeysa Ozturk detained by federal officials

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In a statement provided through her attorney, community activists said that Ozturk was “ambushed” by ICE agents on the way to an Iftar dinner with friends after leaving her apartment. Neighbors reported that unmarked cars had allegedly been surveilling the location for two days before apprehending her on the street, the statement said. Community activists said they did not know yet where Ozturk was being detained.

In an email statement sent to the Tufts community Tuesday night, Tufts University President Sunil Kumar said the school received reports that the student was taken into custody outside an off-campus apartment building in Somerville, though the email did not identify Ozturk by name.

Ozturk does not appear to be a leading figure of the Pro-Palestinian protest movement at Tufts. But according to Ozturk’s attorney, the student’s photo and other identifying information were recently posted on Canary Mission, a website that documents individuals and organizations it considers to be antisemitic. Pro-Palestinian protesters say the site has doxxed and targeted them.

In March 2024, Ozturk co-authored an op-ed in the Tufts Daily, the university’s student paper, criticizing the university’s response to the Pro-Palestinian movement and efforts by members of the student body to sever its ties to Israel.

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Ice agents detain Tufts graduate student over pro-Palestinian activism

Video shows DHS officials wearing masks partially covering their faces while detaining Rumeysa Ozturk in the street

the Guardian

In the videos released on Wednesday, Ozturk is seen walking on the street in daylight when six plainclothes officers approach her, forcibly take her phone and backpack, and place her in handcuffs. The officials, some with badges around their neck, all have their faces covered in the video.

“Is this a kidnapping?” asks a bystander, who appeared to be recording the arrest.

The recorded footage of Ozturk’s arrest began circulating on X, formerly Twitter.

In separate security camera footage, released by local television station WCVB, the agents can be heard responding: “We’re the police.”

The bystander can be heard saying: “You don’t look like it. Why are you hiding your faces?”

Thirty-year-old Ozturk was detained on Tuesday as she left her home in Somerville, Massachusetts, on the outskirts of Boston, on her way to break her Ramadan fast with friends.

“It looked like a kidnapping,” said Michael Mathis, a 32-year-old software engineer whose surveillance camera picked up the footage of the arrest. “They approach her and start grabbing her, with their faces covered. They’re covering their faces. They’re in unmarked vehicles.”

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