Latest news with #Al-Araj
Yahoo
09-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Columbia suspends anti-Israel agitators after takeover, spreading of pamphlets glorifying alleged terrorist
Columbia University has temporarily suspended 65 students after anti-Israel agitators took over a campus building and handed out pamphlets that glorified an alleged terrorist this week. The protesters stormed into Columbia University's Butler Library on Wednesday evening, claiming to have renamed the building "Basel Al-Araj Popular University." According to the NYPD, 80 arrests were made, with 19 males and 61 females being taken into custody by police. Seventy-eight of those individuals were issued a desk appearance ticket for criminal trespass, and the other two arrested protesters were issued a summons. Homeland Security Investigations is requesting fingerprints and the names of those arrested to check their visa status. In addition to the student suspensions, Columbia has also barred an unspecified number of alumni from campus, and 33 others from affiliated institutions. Columbia Faculty Rights Group Condemns University's Handling Of Library Takeover: 'Authoritarian Ethos' At the time anti-Israel agitators rushed into the library, students were studying for final exams. Protesters were chanting "Free Palestine" and demanding that the university divest from Israel. Some protesters were seen climbing on tables inside the library. Read On The Fox News App During the library takeover, students handed out pamphlets glorifying Basel Al-Araj Popular University, an alleged terrorist who was suspected of planning attacks in Israel, according to The Times of Israel. Al-Araj was killed by the Israel Defense Forces and Israel Police's counterterrorism unit in 2017. Officials allege he was part of a terrorist cell plotting attacks on Israeli targets. He "directed the cell and was responsible for purchasing the weaponry," police said at the time. Al-Araj was killed after he opened fire on Israeli authorities during an arrest raid. Columbia University Apartheid Divest, which helped organize the library takeover, posted a portion of the pamphlet on its X account. Portions of the material handed out to students were posted online, showing the campus groups made a hero out of Al-Araj. Mostly Women Arrested In Columbia University Library Takeover: Nypd "At the original Popular University project in the West Bank, Basel al-Araj taught about the Palestinian resistance and insisted that knowledge must serve liberation, not empire," reads the pamphlet posted by CU Apartheid Divest. "Today, we teach each other the stories our universities refuse to tell. We feed each other, protect each other, learn with and from each other. The Popular University is not only a demand for divestment." Included in the pamphlets is a list of demands, which include divestment from Israel, "Cops and ICE off our campus" and amnesty for all Columbia University members facing discipline. Columbia's Acting President Slams Storming Of Campus Library By Anti-israel Agitators: 'Utterly Unacceptable' Claire Shipman, Columbia's acting president, said in a statement Wednesday the NYPD was called to help "secure" the library. She added that two university police officers were injured. "Sadly, during the course of this disruption, two of our Columbia Public Safety Officers sustained injuries during a crowd surge when individuals attempted to force their way into the building and into Room 301," Shipman said. "These actions are outrageous." In a separate statement, Shipman called out the library takeover as unacceptable. "Disruptions to our academic activities will not be tolerated and are violations of our rules and policies; this is especially unacceptable while our students study and prepare for final exams. Columbia strongly condemns violence on our campus, antisemitism and all forms of hate and discrimination, some of which we witnessed today. We are resolute that calls for violence or harm have no place at our University," Shipman said. Fox News' Greg Wehner, Alexis McAdams, Jennifer Johnson, Louis Casiano and Bill Melugin contributed to this article source: Columbia suspends anti-Israel agitators after takeover, spreading of pamphlets glorifying alleged terrorist
Time of India
08-05-2025
- Politics
- Time of India
Over 50 students arrested in pro-Palestinian protest at Columbia University
Over 50 students arrested in pro-Palestinian protest at Columbia University (Picture credit: NYT) — ColumbiaBDS (@ColumbiaBDS) Over 50 pro-Palestinian demonstrators were arrested Wednesday evening after occupying a reading room in Columbia University's Butler Library, in a protest that reignited tensions over the Gaza war on US occupation began around 3 pm (local time), when masked protesters, many wearing keffiyehs, stormed into the second-floor reading room of Butler shared online showed students chanting 'We have nothing to lose but our chains!' while declaring the area a 'liberated zone' and renaming it the 'Basel Al-Araj Popular University.'Al-Araj was a Palestinian activist killed by Israeli forces in draped banners reading 'Strike for Gaza,' stood on desks using megaphones, and distributed pamphlets calling for Columbia to divest from firms allegedly profiting from Israel's military demonstrators defaced library walls and tables, according to New York Post, while one sign inside reportedly read 'Columbia Will Burn.'University officials initially deployed campus security, warning students they could face disciplinary action and arrest if they didn't when protesters refused to show identification and described being 'kettled' inside, the standoff Columbia president Claire Shipman then requested the NYPD's intervention."Requesting the presence of the NYPD is not the outcome we wanted, but it was absolutely necessary to secure the safety of our community," Shipman said in a statement quoted by The New York university reported that two public safety officers were injured in a crowd surge. Protesters also claimed some injuries, with one seen leaving on a stretcher, partially covered, with an ice pack on their NYPD arrived in riot gear around 7 pm (local time), entering the library and arresting 75 individuals, according to The Guardian. Video footage showed protesters being led out in zip ties and loaded into waiting buses. A message sent to students at 6 pm (local time) had warned that the library was closed and the area 'must be cleared.'New York Mayor Eric Adams called the protest 'unacceptable' and was quoted by NBC as saying that the NYPD acted upon a written request from the university. 'We will never tolerate lawlessness,' he said in a later statement, adding that protesters who are not affiliated with Columbia should leave or face arrest. Governor Kathy Hochul also weighed in, saying, 'Everyone has the right to peacefully protest. But violence, vandalism or destruction of property are completely unacceptable. 'US secretary of state Marco Rubio said the visa status of international students involved in the protest would be reviewed, calling the demonstrators 'pro-Hamas thugs' in a statement. Jewish student groups also criticised the protest, with one group sharing an image of the vandalised library and saying it was "unacceptable to have fully masked strangers barging into learning institutions."The protest comes as Columbia faces pressure from the Trump administration, which cut over $400 million in federal research funding due to the university's alleged failure to protect Jewish per The New York Times, officials are currently in talks to restore that funding. The university on Tuesday announced layoffs of nearly 180 staff, largely tied to research grants affected by the Butler Library protest echoed last spring's occupation of Hamilton Hall and a broader encampment movement on US campuses. Since then, Columbia has tightened security, banned masks during demonstrations, and authorised 36 campus safety officers to make per The Guardian, Columbia's leadership has seen multiple changes amid backlash over the administration's perceived compliance with federal demands that critics argue threaten academic University Apartheid Divest(CUAD), which organised Wednesday's action, has drawn criticism for supporting armed resistance. The group's latest statement called on students 'to propagate the successes of the heroic Palestinian armed resistance in weakening Israel and US imperialism.'As final exams approach, university officials have pledged consequences. 'Disruptions to our academic activities will not be tolerated,' said Shipman. 'This is especially unacceptable while our students study and prepare for final exams.'
