*

Homeland secretary orders termination of Harvard student

visa

program

*

Cites alleged antisemitism and coordination with Chinese

Communist Party

*

Harvard calls move unlawful, pledges support for foreign

students

(Adds university student figures in paragraph 9)

By Nate Raymond and Ted Hesson

BOSTON, May 22 (Reuters) - U.S. President Donald Trump's

administration revoked Harvard University's ability to enroll

international students on Thursday, and is forcing existing

students to transfer to other schools or lose their legal

status, the Department of Homeland Security said.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem ordered the

department to terminate the Harvard University's Student and

Exchange Visitor Program certification, the department said in a

statement. Noem accused the university of "fostering violence,

antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist

Party."

Harvard said the Trump administration move - which affects

thousands of students - was illegal and amounted to retaliation.

The clampdown on foreign students marks a significant

escalation of the Trump administration's campaign against the

elite Ivy League university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, which

has emerged as one of Trump's most prominent institutional

targets. The move comes after Harvard refused to provide

information that Noem had previously demanded about some foreign

student visa holders who attend the university, the department

said.

"It is a privilege, not a right, for universities to enroll

foreign students and benefit from their higher tuition payments

to help pad their multibillion-dollar endowments," Noem said in

a statement.

Harvard rejected the allegations and pledged to support

foreign students.

"The government's action is unlawful," the university

said in a statement. "This retaliatory action threatens serious

harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines

Harvard's academic and research mission."

The university said it was "fully committed" to

educating foreign students and was working on producing guidance

for affected students.

Harvard enrolled nearly 6,800 international students in

the 2024-2025 school year, amounting to 27% of its total

enrollment, according to university statistics.

Trump, a Republican, has undertaken an extraordinary

effort to revamp private colleges and schools across the U.S.

that he says foster anti-American, Marxist and "radical left"

ideologies. He has criticized Harvard in particular for hiring

prominent Democrats to teaching or leadership positions.