US revokes visas over comments made about Charlie Kirk’s death

The Trump administration has cancelled the visas of at least six people for public comments made about the murder of right-wing influencer Charlie Kirk.

In a post on X, the US Department of State wrote: “The United States has no obligation to host foreigners who wish death on Americans.”

It shared screenshots of six social media posts which it said were examples of foreign visa holders welcoming Kirk’s death in September, and suggested further visa cancellations would follow.

Kirk, an ally of President Donald Trump, was shot dead while speaking at a university event in Utah.

The 31-year-old’s legacy has been celebrated by conservatives, who view him as a free speech champion and effective mobiliser of young Republicans.

But comments by Kirk, who co-founded Turning Point USA, a student organisation focused on spreading conservative ideas on college campuses, have prompted angry liberal backlash on numerous occasions, and he was accused of hate speech and racism for his comments on issues such as race and crime.

In the statement on Tuesday, the state department said it “continues to identify visa holders who celebrated the heinous assassination of Charlie Kirk”.

The six people who had their visas revoked were from Argentina, South Africa, Mexico, Brazil, Germany and Paraguay, according to the department.

It is unclear when the department revoked the visas and what type of visa each person held.

While they have not been named, South African national Nhlamulo Baloyi told media including Reuters and the Washington Post that his visa had been revoked.

He said he had written one of the posts shared by the state department. In the post, he said “Kirk won’t be remembered as a hero” and described his followers as “trailer trash”.

He added that he received confirmation last week that his business visa had been revoked.

Brazilian comedian Tiago Santineli, 33, identified himself as another member of the group. He told BBC Brasil that he learned two weeks ago while in Portugal for a show that he had lost his US tourist visa.

He said the development was a “source of pride for me and my followers. It didn’t really have any negative impact”.

In a 16 September post to his 430,000 followers on X, Santineli wrote that Kirk had “died too late” and said that he “was the reason for a Nazi demonstration where they marched in tribute to him. Good riddance!”

He told the BBC: “I did make the joke. It was an aggressive joke. I have no regrets. That’s it.”

The announcement of the visa cancellations came the same day as President Trump posthumously awarded Kirk the Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Trump has described Kirk as a “martyr” and blamed what he called “far-left radicals” for the killing.

Kirk was fatally shot on 10 September at Utah Valley University while speaking in front of thousands at The American Comeback tour hosted by Turning Point USA.

Tyler Robinson, 22, was arrested as a suspect two days later and has been charged with aggravated murder by state prosecutors.

The Trump administration’s visa cancellations mirror a larger effort by Republicans to target Kirk’s critics in the wake of his death, with Vice-President JD Vance urging people to “call their employer” to report those who celebrated the killing.

TV host Jimmy Kimmel was temporarily pulled off air after comments he made about the shooting of Charlie Kirk.

More broadly, the Trump administration has expanded social media vetting during visa applications and revoked thousands of student visas as part of its immigration crackdown.

Over 6,000 international student visas have been cancelled this year, and the state department said the “vast majority” of the violations were assault, driving under the influence (DUI), burglary and “support for terrorism”.

While the department did not specify what it meant by “support for terrorism”, the Trump administration has targeted some students who have protested in support of Palestine.

With additional reporting from Mariana Alvim