Judge Orders Release of Detained Turkish Student Amid Free Speech Concerns

In a significant ruling, a federal judge has ordered the immediate release of Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish student at Tufts University, from a Louisiana immigration detention facility. Ozturk was detained after co-authoring an opinion piece critical of her university's response to Israel's war in Gaza.

Judge William Sessions noted that Ozturk's detention raised substantial First Amendment rights concerns, warning it could suppress free speech among non-citizens. The hearing in Vermont also highlighted the Trump administration's controversial deportation efforts against pro-Palestinian activists.

Ozturk's lawyers argued her detention was unlawfully punitive. Now set to return to Massachusetts, Ozturk faces ongoing legal battles as her case brings renewed attention to constitutional rights and the treatment of international students under the Trump administration.

(With inputs from agencies.)