The American branch of the global Betar Zionist movement is using facial recognition technology with artificial intelligence to identify foreign students who have attended pro-Palestine protests in hopes that President-elect Donald Trump will deport them when he comes into office.
Ross Glick, the head of Betar’s US branch, said foreign students on visas in the US shouldn’t have the right to free speech.
“Even many of the protesters engaging in peaceful activities are part of a front for groups that are trying to undermine America and Israel,” he said, according to The Times of Israel. “We believe in freedom of speech, but if a foreign student is here on a visa, they don’t have the same rights as others to protest or promote anti-Zionist narratives.”
Glick said Betar has identified dozens of students from Canada, the UK, and several Arab countries that will be reported to the Trump administration. The process involves identifying people through video footage and then looking into them online.
“The next step is waiting until Trump’s inauguration on January 20 to hand over the information,” Glick said.
President Trump has said he would deport foreign students for taking part in pro-Palestine protests, which he and many other Israel supporters have labeled “antisemitic” despite Jewish students and organizations being involved in the demonstrations.
“When I’m president, we will not allow colleges to be taken over by violent radicals,” Trump said at a rally back in May. “If you come here from another country and try to bring jihadism or anti-Americanism or antisemitism to our campuses, we will immediately deport you, you’ll be out of that school.”
Glick said his organization has been working with members of Congress, including Senators Ted Cruz (R-TX) and John Fetterman (D-PA), to ensure protesters are rounded up as soon as Trump comes into office.
Trump has also vowed to crack down on pro-Palestine protests by going after colleges. “Here is what I will do to defeat antisemitism and defend our Jewish citizens in America: My first week back in the Oval Office, my Administration will inform every college president that if you do not end antisemitic propaganda, they will lose their accreditation and federal taxpayer support,” he said in September.
