Trump administration threatens to bar Harvard University from enrolling international students

The United States government has threatened to ban Harvard University from enrolling international students unless the institute submits the students’ disciplinary records and information about their participation in protests, The Harvard Crimson reported on Thursday.

Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem said in her request that Harvard would lose the “privilege of enrolling foreign students” if it did not comply with the Donald Trump administration’s demands for the records by April 30, BBC reported.

A Harvard spokesperson told Reuters on Thursday that the university was aware of the letter by Noem “regarding grant cancellations and scrutiny of foreign student visas”. Harvard will stand by the statement it had issued earlier this week, the spokesperson was quoted as saying.

Alan Garber, the university president, had said on Monday that the institute “will not surrender its independence or relinquish its constitutional rights”.

Trump said on Wednesday that Harvard was a “joke, teaches hate and stupidity” and that the university should no longer receive federal funds.

“Harvard can no longer be considered even a decent place of learning, and should not be considered on any list of the world’s great universities or colleges,” the US president wrote on social media.

On Tuesday, the Trump administration froze more than $2.2 billion in grants and $60 million in contracts to Harvard University after the institution said it would defy demands to overhaul its policies and...

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