US lawmakers demand release of Rumeysa Ozturk and Mahmoud Khalil in Louisiana

A delegation of Democratic lawmakers traveled to Louisiana on Tuesday to meet with Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish doctoral student, and Mahmoud Khalil, a Palestinian green card holder, both detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The group described their continued detention as a “national disgrace” and called for their immediate release.

Senator Markey at LA Detention Facility https://t.co/2BpV91RmsK

— Ed Markey (@SenMarkey) April 22, 2025

Sen. Ed Markey of Massachusetts, speaking at a press conference alongside Representatives Jim McGovern, Ayanna Pressley, and Bennie Thompson, said the arrests violate constitutional protections, including the First Amendment right to free speech and the Fifth Amendment right to due process.

“I spent the day at the ICE Detention centers where Rumeysa Ozturk and Mahmoud Khalil are being unjustly detained. They’ve been taken thousands of miles away from home, and denied the dignity, medical care, and due process they deserve,” Pressley said in a social media post on X.

“This is not normal. No part of this is legal or just. My constituents deserve to live free from fear. Our freedoms and our destinies are tied,” she added.

“The Trump administration just feels it has the right to take people from across our country and put them into facilities like this. It’s a national disgrace,” said Markey.

Ozturk and Khalil detained amid pro-Palestinian crackdown

Ozturk, a Ph.D. student at Tufts University, was detained on March 25 after being named on the Canary Mission website for co-authoring an op-ed urging divestment from Israel.

Khalil, a Columbia University graduate, was arrested for participating in pro-Palestinian protests. Neither has been charged with a crime.

Khalil was denied temporary release to attend the birth of his first child. Pressley stated that Ozturk was arrested en route to an iftar meal during Ramadan and denied basic necessities such as food and water.

McGovern warned that the detentions reflect an authoritarian shift, likening the situation to “a new era of McCarthyism.”

Lawmakers: Detention locations chosen to restrict legal rights

The lawmakers criticized the Trump administration for transferring Ozturk and Khalil to Louisiana, placing them under the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals—a jurisdiction viewed as less favorable to immigrant rights.

“They brought her 1,500 miles from Somerville, Massachusetts,” said Markey, and added, “Why? Because this is the single most conservative Circuit Court of Appeals in the United States of America.”

He added that Ozturk has suffered multiple asthma attacks and is not receiving adequate medical care.

Türkiye monitors Ozturk case, legal hearings underway

Türkiye’s Consul General in Boston, Halime Digdem Buner, confirmed that Turkish officials have been closely monitoring Ozturk’s case and are providing consular assistance, legal support, and medical oversight.

Ozturk’s detention involves two ongoing legal proceedings—an immigration case in Louisiana and a separate objection to her detention. A federal court in Vermont ruled it has jurisdiction over the latter and ordered Ozturk’s transfer by May 1.

Key legal dates include:

• May 1: Deadline for Ozturk’s transfer to Vermont
• May 9: Bail hearing
• May 22: Main appeal hearing

According to Buner, Turkish consulates in Houston and Boston have maintained contact with Ozturk and attended court hearings.

Constitutional rights cited in legal defense

Ozturk and Khalil are contesting their detentions in court. Ozturk’s attorneys argue that her academic writings are constitutionally protected.

Khalil, a lawful permanent resident, was ruled eligible for deportation earlier this month under a rarely used provision citing potential “serious adverse foreign policy consequences.”

Pressley noted Khalil’s background as a refugee from Syria, stating, “He knows what an authoritarian regime looks like—this is it.”