On Wednesday, anti-Israel protesters wearing keffiyehs ripped up and burned diplomas outside Columbia University, following a graduation ceremony. The protesters also clashed with police.
Protesters wearing masks set fire to diplomas in food trays outside the university, holding a sign that read “Free Mahmoud Khalil,” a former student who was arrested by immigration agents in March and is being deported by Trump.
“Free, free Palestine,” and “You’re committing genocide,” the protesters yelled in the rain, accompanied by drums.
At least three people were seen ripping up diplomas, with only one wearing a Columbia blue robe. The group was surrounded by older demonstrators who did not appear to be students, as well as those holding signs indicating that they were university alumni.
According to the NYPD, police responded and extinguished the fire, arresting one person.
Later, protesters clashed with police across the street from Columbia’s main entrance. They tried to push through the barriers, but a large police force stopped them in their tracks.
The protesters then left and marched down 116th Street toward the Hudson River, with the NYPD following.
The Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD) group, led by Khalil, urged students to protest the university’s celebration of Prof. Zvi Galil, who has previously served as Columbia’s dean and Tel Aviv University president.
“While 14,000 Palestinian children are under imminent threat of death from the occupation’s starvation of Gaza, Columbia wants to honor a WAR CRIMINAL and MURDERER on our campus today,” the group wrote on X without providing evidence.
The New York Post reported that approximately 12,000 graduates and 25,000 family and friends attended Wednesday’s ceremony.
The disruption came after students heckled Acting University President Claire Shipman during a graduation ceremony on Tuesday, shouting, “Free Mahmoud!”
The chants lasted nearly 30 seconds. After the agitators subsided, the acting president was able to deliver her final remarks.
It was the latest in a series of protests at Manhattan College since the start of the Gaza war. Last year, the university’s encampment protests sparked nationwide campus protests.
Columbia students took control of Hamilton Hall and clashed with riot police. Over 200 people were arrested as a result of the ugly scenes.
Students protested inside a Columbia library two weeks ago, prompting dozens more arrests as university officials pledged to take a tougher stance on illegal behavior on campus.
