Donald Trump bans visas for new foreign students at Harvard University

US President Donald Trump announced a ban on visas for foreign students who are set to begin attending Harvard University. The decision was reportedly announced on Wednesday, ramping up his administration’s crackdown on higher education.

“I have determined that it is necessary to restrict the entry of foreign nationals who seek to enter the United States solely or principally to participate in a course of study at Harvard University or in an exchange visitor program hosted by Harvard University,” Trump was quoted by news gwncy AFP as saying.

In an executive order signed Wednesday, Trump declared that it would jeopardise national security to allow Harvard to continue hosting foreign students on its campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

“I have determined that the entry of the class of foreign nationals described above is detrimental to the interests of the United States because, in my judgment, Harvard’s conduct has rendered it an unsuitable destination for foreign students and researchers,” Trump wrote in the order, as per the Associated Press.

The order further escalates the White House’s fight with the nation’s oldest and wealthiest university. 

A federal court in Boston had earlier blocked the Department of Homeland Security from barring international students at Harvard last week. Trump’s order invokes a different legal authority.

It stems from Harvard’s refusal to submit to a series of demands made by the federal government. It has escalated recently after the Department of Homeland Security said Harvard refused to provide records related to misconduct by foreign students.

Harvard said it has complied with the request, but the government said the school’s response was insufficient.

Last month, the US State Department ordered all its consular missions overseas to begin additional vetting of visa applicants looking to travel to Harvard University for any purpose, according to an internal cable seen by Reuters.