The US State Department has made a significant announcement, revealing that more than 1,75,000 visas belonging to foreign nationals have been revoked so far under the administration of President Donald Trump. Amid this crackdown on immigration, the government has taken this decision, revoking the travel and immigration rights of thousands of individuals.
The department stated in a release that this visa revocation drive specifically targeted those who violated visa regulations, those who committed crimes, those who incited violence against American citizens, those who defrauded Americans, those who misused the immigration system, and foreign nationals who posed a threat to national security.
The State Department made clear that the majority of visas were revoked following investigations by law enforcement agencies. It stated that assault, drunk driving, theft, and drug-related offenses were among the primary reasons cited for the revocations.
The department also specifically disclosed a few cases in its statement. One individual faced felony rape and sexual assault charges, while another faced kidnapping and human trafficking charges. Additionally, the visa of another individual facing more than a dozen charges related to possessing obscene sexual material involving children was also revoked. The department further stated that a US embassy in North Africa revoked over 100 visas belonging to “birth tourist” parents who had come to the United States primarily to give birth with the intent of securing US citizenship for their children.
Separately, the State Department revealed that it had also revoked the visas of several foreign nationals who celebrated the killing of conservative activist Charlie Kirk. The department had already announced revoking more than 100,000 visas by January, which stood as a record at the time. The Trump administration has been adopting an increasingly stringent approach to visa approvals by tightening social media screening and expanding vetting processes. However, human rights experts have strongly condemned this approach, expressing concern that it poses a threat to freedom of expression and amounts to placing immigrants under surveillance and specifically targeting them.