Key points
- Trump is unhappy with US universities’ handling of pro-Palestinian protests
- US govt also seeks to limit pathways to legal immigration
- Support for Hamas listed as a specific example
ISLAMABAD: The United States (US) State Department has said that the country’s diplomats have officially been directed to screen the social media and online presence of all foreign nationals applying for student and other educational visas.
According to a State Department cable issued on Wednesday, embassies have been asked to flag any “advocacy for, aid or support for foreign terrorists and other threats to US national security” and “support for unlawful antisemitic harassment or violence.”
Support for Hamas is listed as a specific example, Politico reported.
Latest salvo
The cable appears to be the latest salvo in the Trump administration’s efforts to punish American colleges and universities for their handling of pro-Palestinian protests on campus and root out what it alleges is rampant antisemitism and liberalism at elite institutions of higher learning.
It also comes as the Trump administration seeks to limit pathways to legal immigration to the United States in tandem with its crackdown on undocumented migrants on US soil.
Screening for “hostility”
The New York Times reported that the State Department is restarting the processing of visa applications from students and visiting scholars, but is screening for “hostility” toward the United States.
All applications for F, M and J non-immigrant visas, which are for scholarly exchanges and research, will be reviewed, the officials said.
The agency issued the guidelines after halting the processing of student and visiting scholar visas for nearly a month.
