Republican-Led Congressional Panel Criticizes Columbia’s Response as Protests Against Israel’s Actions in Gaza Lead to Arrests, Suspensions, and Leadership Resignations. Most students at Columbia University who were subjected to disciplinary measures, suspensions, or arrests for participating in pro-Palestinian demonstrations against Israel’s actions in Gaza and for calling for an end to U.S. military aid to Israel are set to return to campus, as per details released by a Republican-led U.S. congressional panel investigating allegations of antisemitism on campus.
These protests, part of a broader wave of demonstrations across the U.S., included demands for Columbia to divest from Israeli assets. The university’s decision to involve police in clearing encampments on campus has been met with criticism from human rights organizations and led to the recent resignation of the university’s president, Minouche Shafik.
Of the 40 students who were arrested or disciplined on April 18 when police were called to the campus, only two remain suspended.The panel criticized Columbia for not taking stronger actions. Meanwhile, as reported by Reuters on Monday, out of more than 80 students arrested between April 29 and May 1, just five are still facing interim suspensions.
While disciplinary cases are ongoing for many students, Columbia has not charged any of the protesting students with hate speech. These protests occurred against the backdrop of renewed violence in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, which escalated after an attack by Hamas on October 7 and the subsequent Israeli military response, leading to significant casualties and a humanitarian crisis in Gaza .
House Republicans have spent several months bringing university leaders to testify before Congress regarding allegations of antisemitism on campuses, sparked by student demands for their schools to divest from Israel amidst its ongoing conflict with Hamas. On April 24, Speaker of the House Mike Johnson visited Columbia University, where he met with Jewish students and addressed concerns that the pro-Palestinian demonstrations were becoming increasingly antisemitic.
In response to these concerns, GOP-led committees have held hearings that highlighted the experiences of Jewish students who reported facing harassment on campus. These probes have contributed to the resignations of various university leaders and have been leveraged by the Republican Party as a political strategy to spotlight internal divisions within the Democratic Party.
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