WASHINGTON — US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the United States has revoked the visas of at least 300 foreign students as part of President Donald Trump’s campaign against pro-Palestinian protests on university campuses.

“Maybe more than 300 at this point,” Rubio said during a visit to Guyana. “We do it every day, every time I find one of these lunatics.”

Rubio was responding to questions about the administration’s crackdown on rhetoric it considers anti-Israel.

The policy includes revoking student visas of foreign nationals participating in protests or campus activism deemed disruptive.

His remarks came after immigration officials detained Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish doctoral student at Tufts University and a Fulbright Scholar. A video showing her being taken into custody by plainclothes officers outside her home in Boston went viral, sparking outrage and protests on social media.

Ozturk, who is studying Child Study and Human Development, is being held in a detention center in Louisiana. It remains unclear whether she has been charged with any offense.

Rubio defended the move, saying: “If you apply for a student visa to come to the United States and you say you’re coming not just to study, but to participate in movements that vandalize universities, harass students, take over buildings, and cause chaos, we’re not giving you that visa.”

Rubio did not cite any specific allegations against Ozturk. Her attorney, Mahsa Khanbabai, said her detention appears to be linked to her participation in peaceful protests and her criticism of Israel in a campus opinion piece.

The Trump administration is using provisions of the Immigration and Nationality Act to justify the revocation of visas, claiming such individuals pose a threat to national security or US foreign policy.

The crackdown is part of a broader executive order signed by President Trump in January, aimed at combating what the administration has labeled as antisemitism. In a related move, the White House withdrew $400 million in funding from Columbia University, citing its alleged failure to address antisemitism on campus.

One of the most high-profile detentions involves Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian graduate student from Columbia University, who remains in custody in Louisiana without formal charges.

A federal judge in Massachusetts has ordered that Ozturk be returned to the state, but she remains detained in Louisiana. The court has asked the federal government to provide more details about her case.

Meanwhile, Senator Elizabeth Warren called the arrest “an alarming pattern to stifle civil liberties,” accusing the administration of targeting legally residing students without due process.

On Thursday, Rubio reiterated the administration’s stance: “We give student visas to earn a degree, not become a social activist tearing up our campuses. If you lie, get the visa, and then engage in that kind of behavior, we’re going to revoke it.” — Agencies