In this April 20, 2020 photo, a pedestrian wearing a protective mask exits Harvard Yard on the closed Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts, US. (PHOTO VIA BLOOMBERG)

NEW YORK / LOS ANGELES - Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) sued the Trump administration on Wednesday, seeking to block a new rule that would bar foreign students from remaining in the United States if their universities move all courses online due to the coronavirus pandemic.

There are more than a million foreign students at US colleges and universities, and many schools depend on revenue from foreign students, who often pay full tuition

The two universities filed a lawsuit in federal court in Boston asking for an emergency temporary restraining order on the directive issued by the government on Monday.

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“We will pursue this case vigorously so that our international students - and international students at institutions across the country - can continue their studies without the threat of deportation,” Harvard President Lawrence Bacow wrote in a statement addressed to the Harvard community.

The lawsuit, filed by two of the most elite US universities, is the first to challenge the order that could force tens of thousands of foreign students to leave the country if their schools switch fully to remote learning.

Harvard had announced it would hold all classes online in the coming fall term.

In an amicus brief, the University of Southern California (USC) joined and strongly supported the lawsuit filed by Harvard and MIT, said USC President Carol Folt on Wednesday.

The highly rated private research university located in Los Angeles, California, also noted that it is actively considering all other legal options.

"We are also working with our Congressional delegation and fellow universities on legislative and other solutions to this terribly misguided decision," Folt wrote in a tweet.

"USC's vibrant international community is vital to our University and has been since our founding in 1880," USC said in a statement.

USC is extremely popular with international students. A total of 12,265 international students were enrolled at USC during the 2019-20 academic year, with around 7,000 from China, according to the university's website.

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Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey said in a statement the state was also planning to sue over the rule, which she called “cruel” and “illegal.”

Her office said it was still working out the details of any potential legal action but that it had been in touch with Harvard and other major colleges and universities in the state to “support their efforts to protect students.”

White House Press Secretary Kayleigh McEnany suggested on Wednesday that rather than Harvard and MIT suing the Trump administration over the rule, students unable to go to class in person should sue the universities.

“Perhaps the better lawsuit would be coming from students who have to pay full tuition with no access to in-person classes to attend,” McEnany told a White House news conference.

President Donald Trump is pushing schools across the country to reopen in the autumn.

The Trump administration announcement blindsided academic institutions grappling with the logistical challenges of safely resuming classes as the coronavirus pandemic continues unabated around the world, and surges in the United States, especially among young people.

There are more than a million foreign students at US colleges and universities, and many schools depend on revenue from foreign students, who often pay full tuition.

The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency rule said most students on F-1 and M-1 visas could stay if their programs were in person or offered a mix of online and in-person instruction.

The announcement left students, professors, and universities scrambling to figure out exactly who would be affected by the rule and how those affected could comply without having to leave the country. On Twitter, professors across the country offered to teach outdoor in-person independent study courses for affected students.

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The ICE policy change marked an unexpected reversal of exceptions to the rules limiting online learning for foreign students when colleges and universities in March rushed to shutter campuses and move to virtual classes as the pandemic forced lockdowns.

ICE “proceeded without any indication of having considered the health of students, faculty, university staff, or communities,” the two schools’ complaint said.

The lawsuit alleges the government skirted the proper rulemaking process and is asking the court to strike it down.

US District Judge Allison Burroughs, appointed by former President Barack Obama, is assigned to hear the case. In 2017, she ordered a halt to Trump’s travel ban on several Muslim-majority countries, a policy that was eventually upheld by the US Supreme Court.

With Xinhua inputs