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Cornell University graduate student Momodou Taal, who had his U.S. visa revoked due to his involvement in protests against Israel, has opted to leave the country rather than face deportation.
Taal, a dual citizen of the UK and The Gambia, lost his student visa after participating in on-campus demonstrations last year amid the Israel-Gaza conflict. He had previously sued to block his deportation, but on Monday, he announced on X that he had chosen to depart “free and with my head held high” after a judge denied his request to delay removal.
The Trump administration has intensified actions against international students involved in pro-Palestinian protests, citing national security concerns. Taal is at least the second student to voluntarily leave the U.S. under pressure from immigration authorities, a move officials classify as “self-deportation.”
“Given what we have seen across the United States, I have lost faith that a favorable ruling from the courts would guarantee my personal safety and ability to express my beliefs,” Taal wrote on X. “Weighing up these options, I took the decision to leave on my own terms.”
Taal was suspended twice by Cornell University over his protest activities. On the day of the Hamas attack on Israel in 2023, he posted: “Glory to the Resistance” and later expressed support for “armed resistance in Palestine” at a rally, according to The Cornell Daily Sun.
Last week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio confirmed that at least 300 student visas had been revoked due to participation in pro-Palestinian demonstrations. Trump administration officials argue that the Immigration and Nationality Act permits the removal of non-citizens whose actions conflict with U.S. foreign policy and national security interests.
These deportations align with an executive order signed by Trump in January, aimed at combating what the administration classifies as antisemitism. However, critics argue the policy suppresses free speech and unfairly targets student activists.
Another affected student, Indian scholar Ranjani Srinivasan, told the media that she hopes to clear her name. “I’m not a terrorist sympathizer,” she said. “I’m literally just a random student.” Srinivasan, who left the U.S. under similar circumstances, hopes to re-enroll at Columbia University to complete her PhD.
