More than 100 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested at Columbia University on Thursday, city and NYPD officials said.


What You Need To Know

  • More than 100 pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested at Columbia University on Thursday, city and NYPD officials said

  • Columbia University President Minouche Shafik, in a letter to the NYPD, authorized the department to clear an encampment of protesters from its campus, saying the group had violated school policy and created an “harassing and intimidating environment"

  • At a news conference Thursday, Mayor Eric Adams said he understands that the conflict in the Middle East has left many people angry, but he urged New Yorkers to protest in a peaceful manner

According to NYPD officials, 108 people received summonses for trespassing. Two of those individuals were additionally charged with obstruction of governmental administration, the NYPD said.

Columbia University President Minouche Shafik, in a letter to the NYPD, authorized the department to clear an encampment of protesters from its campus, saying the group had violated school policy and created an “harassing and intimidating environment.”

“This group has been informed numerous times and in writing that they are not permitted to occupy this space, are in violation of the University’s rules and policies and must disperse,” Shafik wrote in her letter to police. “All University students participating in the encampment have been informed they are suspended.”

“The continued encampment raises safety concerns for the individuals involved and the entire community,” she added.

In a letter sent out to the school community, Shafik said students set up the encampment on the South Lawn of the university’s Morningside Heights campus early Wednesday morning.

Shafik also said the decision to involve police was one she “hoped would never be necessary.”

“I took this extraordinary step because these are extraordinary circumstances,” Shafik wrote. “The individuals who established the encampment violated a long list of rules and policies.”

“Protests have a storied history at Columbia and are an essential component of free speech in America and on our campus,” she said, adding, “The current encampment violates all of the new policies, severely disrupts campus life, and creates a harassing and intimidating environment for many of our students.”

In a statement, Donna Lieberman, the executive director of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said universities have had a long tradition of practicing student advocacy, and Columbia’s decision to call the NYPD to step in “marks a significant departure from past practice.”

“Coming as it does amid heavy-handed pressure from Congress to clamp down on student protest that criticizes Israel, Columbia's excessive response raises further concerns about its commitment to free expression. Columbia should be creating an environment that encourages people to speak out, participate in hard discussions, and engage with global events - not rushing to call the cops on their own students,” she wrote.

“All we are asking is that the university do what is right in this moment in time during this horrific genocide against the Palestinian people,” Shanif Ibrahim, a protester, said.

“What happened today at Columbia University was an act of violence toward Arab, Muslim Palestinian students, Jewish students and anyone who supports Palestinian liberation,” Layla Saliba, a Columbia student, said.

At a news conference Thursday, Mayor Eric Adams said he understands that the conflict in the Middle East has left many people angry, but he urged New Yorkers to protest in a peaceful manner.

“New Yorkers have every right to express their sorrow, but that heartbreak does not give you the right to harass others to spread hate,” he said. “And I urge everyone who is protesting to please, please do so respectfully because we would not be in a city of lawlessness.”

The arrests came a day after Shafik testified before Congress about how the college deals with incidents of antisemitism.

She said multiple faculty members have faced consequences for “unacceptable” remarks, adding that the university has formed a task force to address antisemitism and Islamophobia on campus.