A recent Columbia graduate and a leader of last spring's student encampment in protest of Israel's genocidal war on Gaza been detained by US law enforcement, placing his and the university's sanctuary status in danger.
The arrest occurred on Saturday, when Mahmoud Khalil, who graduated in December, was taken from his student residence. Some reports say he was taken by the Department of Homeland Security, while others say it was Immigration and Customs Enforcement.
"Columbia has abandoned its nearly decade-long commitment to being a sanctuary campus. This development also closely follows the Department of Justice's announcement on the same day that it plans to cancel $400 million of grants and contracts with Columbia in retaliation for students protesting Columbia's investments in Israel," the labour union Student Workers of Columbia wrote in a public statement issued on Sunday.
"By allowing ICE on campus, Columbia is surrendering to the Trump administration's assault on universities across the country and sacrificing international students to protect its finances," the group added. With this latest development, they are urging to practice vigilance and know their rights.
It is unclear what prompted the detention of Khalil. However, multiple people on social media have Shai Davidai, a Columbia professor from Israel who was temporarily suspended from the university for his alleged harassment of pro-Palestinian protesters. Some have shared apparent screenshots of him demanding consequences for student activists.
On Sunday, Davidai took to social media to . Naming two pro-Palestinian student protesters at Columbia, he wrote, "Here they are spreading lies about me. If anything happens to me, you now know who to hold responsible. To be clear: Mahmoud Khalil was detained because he broke the law and his green card conditions. There was no need for collaboration."
Last spring, Columbia became a world leader in the student protest move over Israel's military assault on Gaza. This month, the university, along with its sister college Barnard, made headlines again following suspensions and expulsion of students over recent pro-Palestinian activism.
Since October 2023, more than 62,000 Palestinians in Gaza and the occupied West Bank, most of them civilians, have been killed in Israeli attacks.
US President Donald Trump has vowed to crack down on pro-Palestinian student protesters, which includes revoking visas, deporting foreign students to their home countries and withholding federal funding.