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Barnard College Expels Two Students Over Pro-Palestinian Protests

Barnard College Expels Two Students Over Pro-Palestinian Protests

Al Arabiya25-02-2025
Columbia University-affiliated Barnard College has expelled two students over pro-Palestinian protests, marking what an activist group called the first official expulsion on campus over the Israel-Gaza war. The college described the action as a consequence of unsanctioned classroom disruption.
Columbia University Apartheid Divest (C UAD) condemned the expulsions as a 'serious escalation in the crackdown against students advocating for disinvestment from the Israeli war machine.'
The university said a 'History of Modern Israel' class last month was disrupted by protesters distributing fliers that included 'violent imagery.' On Monday, the university stated it had referred two participants in the protest, who were from an affiliated institution, to their home institution for discipline and barred them from campus.
'Expulsion is always an extraordinary measure, but so too is our commitment to respect, inclusion, and the integrity of the academic experience,' Barnard College said.
Israel's military assault on Gaza following Hamas' October 2023 attack has led to months of protests across the US, with demonstrators calling for an end to Washington's support for Israel.
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