Washington, MINA – The US State Department, under Secretary of State Marco Rubio, is launching a new AI-powered initiative called “Catch and Revoke” in an effort to revoke visas of foreign nationals who appear to support Hamas, the American website Axios reported on Friday, as quoted by Palestine Chronicle.
The AI tools would review “tens of thousands of student visa holders’ social media accounts,” in what Axios described as “a dramatic escalation in the U.S. government’s policing of foreign nationals’ conduct and speech.”
According to Axios, “officials plan to examine internal databases to see whether any visa holders were arrested but allowed to stay in the country during the Biden administration.”
The State Department is also reportedly investigating news reports related to anti-Israel demonstrations and lawsuits by Jewish students.
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Rubio had already expressed his intention to cancel visas of pro-Palestinian students in the aftermath of the October 7 attack.
“We see people marching at our universities and in the streets of our country… calling for Intifada, celebrating what Hamas has done… Those people need to go,” he said on October 15, 2023 during an interview with Fox News.
The move is part of a broader political stance, with the Trump administration also echoing similar rhetoric. []
Mi’raj News Agency (MINA)
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