US visa cancellation leaves students in the lurch

The US immigration authorities have canceled the visas of a number of Saudi scholarship students, which may imperil their education.
An official with the “Saudis in America” organization, which provides consultation and aid to Saudi students, said the US immigration canceled the study visas of a number of students for the current year and refused to let some of the Saudis enter the country after they arrived at the airports.
He said the authorities have notified the US Consulate in Dhahran, and the students who are currently in Saudi Arabia have been told to apply for visas afresh.
The official said the cancellation of visas for Saudis has been under way for more than a year. “The consulate can’t help the students much because the issue is related to the immigration authorities. The consulate can only address the embassy and ask that the visas be issued quickly or it can write to the Education Ministry for a change in the country for the affected scholarship students.”
The official said visas may have been canceled because the university is not the same as listed, visa may have expired or the student is characterized as “suspicious.”
Mohammed Al-Issa, the Saudi cultural attache in the US, said the number of students who have faced such a problem is not big. “Those who have faced this problem may write to the cultural section, so that the American authorities can be contacted.”

Source: Arab News