By South China Morning Post | Created at 2025-03-27 22:24:51 | Updated at 2025-03-31 18:09:34
3 days ago
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Thursday he has cancelled the visas of more than 300 “lunatics” in a growing crackdown against anti-Israel activism on American university campuses.
Asked to confirm reports of 300 visas stripped, Rubio said: “Maybe more than 300 at this point. We do it every day.”
“Every time I find one of these lunatics, I take away their visas,” he told reporters on a visit to Guyana.
“At some point I hope we run out because we’ve gotten rid of them,” Rubio said.
Since US President Donald Trump returned to office on January 20, Rubio has moved aggressively against students at the forefront of on-campus anti-Israel protests in response to the Gaza war.
The most high-profile case is Mahmoud Khalil, who led protests at Columbia University in New York. He was arrested this month and taken to Louisiana ahead of deportation proceedings, despite being a US permanent resident.
