State Department to Scrutinize Social Media of Gaza Visitors for US Visas

The US State Department, under the direction of Secretary of State Marco Rubio, will begin reviewing the social media accounts of foreign applicants for US visas who have visited the Gaza Strip in the past 18 years, according to an internal cable obtained by Reuters news agency, as per Al Jazeera.

The directive encompasses all types of US visas, including those for students and tourists, and targets individuals who have spent “any length of time in an official or diplomatic capacity” in Gaza on or after January 1, 2007. The screening will also extend to employees and volunteers of non-governmental organizations operating in Gaza.

According to the cable, if the social media review reveals any “potential derogatory information relating to security issues,” the US visa application will be flagged for an interagency investigation to determine whether the applicant poses a national security risk.

Secretary Rubio has previously stated that his office has revoked over 300 visas since the beginning of the year, including student visas of individuals who have criticized Israel’s war on Gaza. While the U.S. Constitution protects freedom of speech regardless of visa status, the Trump administration has argued that such actions pose a threat to U.S. foreign policy.

The Trump administration’s focus extends beyond individual visa holders to universities themselves, which have been the site of significant protests since the start of the war in Gaza on October 7, 2023.

President Trump has also taken aim at Harvard University, freezing over $2 billion in federal funding after the university reportedly refused to implement policy changes requested by the administration. These changes include repealing affirmative action in the admissions process, screening for students potentially “hostile to American values and institutions,” and addressing anti-Semitism on campus.

Earlier this week, the Department of Homeland Security suggested that Harvard may be ineligible to host international students due to its alleged “radical ideology” and support for “foreign visa-holding rioters and faculty [who] have spewed anti-semitic hate.”