US threatens to strip Harvard's ability to host international students

The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS), on Wednesday, threatened to revoke Harvard University’s ability to enrol international students if it does not hand over detailed records on some international students, Anadolu Agency reports.

“Harvard bending the knee to anti-Semitism—driven by its spineless leadership—fuels a cesspool of extremist riots and threatens our national security,” said DHS Secretary, Kristi Noem, in a statement.

“With anti-American, pro-Hamas ideology poisoning its campus and classrooms, Harvard’s position as a top institution of higher education is a distant memory,” she added.

She gave Harvard until 30 April to share “detailed records on Harvard’s foreign student visa holders’ illegal and violent activities.” If it does not comply, she warned, the University would “face immediate loss of Student and Exchange Visitor Program (SEVP) certification.”

SEVP certification allows US universities to issue documents enabling international students to apply for visas, according to the DHS.

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Harvard has 6,793 international students, making up 27.2 per cent of its enrolment for the 2024–25 academic year, according to the University.

Noem’s warning came after the Trump administration withdrew more than $2.2 billion in federal funding from Harvard on Monday, after it refused to implement government-mandated policy reforms.

Among other changes, the administration has called on the University to scrap its diversity, equity and inclusion policies and to block admissions of international students deemed “hostile to American values … including students supportive of terrorism or anti-Semitism.”

Defending the funding freeze, the Trump administration said universities must uphold civil rights laws and stop the harassment of Jewish students, without providing any examples.

A federal task force warned that it is “time for elite universities to take the problem seriously.”

Trump also threatened, Tuesday, to remove Harvard’s tax-exempt status.

The administration has also moved to revoke the visas of more than 525 students, faculty and researchers at over 80 US institutions, citing offenses ranging from alleged support for terrorist organisations to years-old misdemeanours.

Earlier this week, US immigration officials arrested Columbia University student, Mohsen Mahdawi, a key organiser of pro-Palestine demonstrations.

Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said Mahdawi’s activism “could undermine the Middle East peace process by reinforcing anti-Semitic sentiment,” according to the New York Times.

Mahdawi received his Green Card, granting him permanent residency, in 2015.

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