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Anti-Israel protesters at Columbia University target former PM Bennett’s campus appearance
More than 100 protesters gathered on Columbia University’s campus Tuesday in response to an appearance from former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett.
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The New York Police Department took multiple protesters into custody at Barnard College late Wednesday when the occupation of the school library to protest the expulsion of three students who expressed anti-Israel views was broken up over a bomb threat.
On Wednesday evening, the NYPD was called to the Milstein Center on the prestigious campus after a bomb threat and hours of anti-Israel agitators demonstrating inside the campus building.
“Anyone who refuses to leave the location is subject to arrest,” the NYPD said in an X post. “Please stay away from the area.”
Sources confirmed to Fox News that at least 10 people were arrested. The NYPD declined to provide information on their charges.
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The NYPD cleared pro-Palestinian demonstrators from Barnard College after a group of student protesters occupied Milstein Library Wednesday night. (Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The NYPD clashed with student protesters at Barnard College in New York City Wednesday evening. The NYPD arrived after a bomb threat. (Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images)
In a statement, Columbia University leadership said the campus disruption “is not acceptable conduct.”
“We are aware of a disruption of Milstein Library at Barnard College — a separate institution from Columbia University, although it is affiliated. We are in touch with Barnard’s leadership and security team as they address the situation and will continue to monitor it closely,” the university said in a release Wednesday afternoon.
“The disruption of academic activities is not acceptable conduct. We are committed to supporting our Columbia student body and our campus community during this challenging time.”
Fox News Digital has reached out to the university for comment on the protest arrests.
The NYPD cleared anti-Israel demonstrators from Barnard College after a group of student protesters occupied Milstein Library Wednesday night. (Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Democratic New York Rep. Ritchie Torres, who represents the city’s Bronx borough, condemned protests on social media Wednesday.
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“Anti-Israel agitators are at it again, taking over a building at Barnard college and preventing students from attending classes and using the library,” Torres wrote on social media. “If colleges like Barnard had a clear policy of expelling students who take over private property, the hostile takeovers would end in a heartbeat. The lack of accountability is an open invitation to lawlessness and disorder on college campuses.”
Anti-Israel demonstrators occupied Barnard College’s Milstein Library Wednesday, demanding the reinstatement of expelled students and changes to the institution’s disciplinary policies. (Lokman Vural Elibol/Anadolu via Getty Images)
The protests came after more than 100 protesters gathered outside a Columbia University building Tuesday evening in response to an appearance from former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, the university’s student newspaper reported.
Columbia/Barnard Hillel, the School of International and Public Affairs’ Institute of Global Politics, and the Kraft Center for Jewish Student Life organized the event with Bennett in New York City.
“The discussion was an important part of our ongoing mission to empower our students to explore, learn and grow intellectually,” Brian Cohen, spokesperson for the Kraft Center, said in a statement to Fox News Digital about Bennett’s visit.
“The event proceeded without disruption. Unfortunately, the current campus dynamic forced us to make last night’s event open only to invited students.”
Anti-Israel protesters gather outside the Columbia University campus in New York City to protest against former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett March 4, 2025. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu)
Cohen added, “[S]tudents of diverse backgrounds and political leanings listened to a world leader and asked challenging questions – as one would expect at a world-class university.”
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Columbia JVP and the Columbia Palestine Solidarity Coalition organized the protest against the event, according to the Columbia Spectator. There have been countless anti-Israel demonstrations on college campuses across the United States since Oct. 7, 2023, when Hamas first attacked Israel, sparking the beginning of a 15-month war that has left tens of thousands of people dead.
“The university coordinated with Columbia Hillel on public safety preparations for their event with former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett, including with respect to any campus protest activity and to minimize potential disruptions to academic activities,” Columbia University said in a statement Wednesday. “The event was well attended and took place without disruption or interference.”
The school said “groups from outside” the “Columbia community also protested in public spaces outside the University’s gates, which the NYPD was responsible for managing.”
“As always, we monitored to ensure activity on our campus was safe and complied with our rules and policies, including the immediate enforcement of policies to prevent discrimination or the targeting of our community members in any form,” the school said.
Anti-Israel protesters gather near Columbia University March 4, 2025. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu)
Three Barnard College students were recently expelled after breaking into Columbia’s Hamilton Hall in April of last year. Barnard is an all-women’s college that is part of Columbia University’s education system.
On Wednesday, masked protesters entered the Milstein Center at Barnard College, chanting “free Palestine” and disrupting classes. Students at Barnard, where tuition and housing can cost more than $95,000, told Fox News’ Alexis McAdams they were told to shelter in place.
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The Columbia University chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace (Columbia JVP) said it is its “duty to ensure that war criminals and genociders never feel welcomed on our campus, despite invitations from groups such as Hillel” in an Instagram post announcing a location for Tuesday evening’s protest.
The Instagram post included photos of an email invitation for the event asking attendees to “minimize discussing this event with others” and describing their guest’s identity as “confidential.”
“The group of individuals who attempted to disrupt the event proved that this was a necessary precaution,” Cohen said of the decision to make the event invite-only. “We’re thankful that, due to our careful planning, NYPD prevented the protesters from getting to the venue. At no point was our event impacted by the disruptions outside.
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“I look forward to the day when we can, once again, host important educational opportunities like this for the broader university community.”
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Columbia University Jews for Ceasefire also issued a statement Tuesday ahead of the protests, saying Barnard Hillel “deprived the vast majority of the student body an opportunity to engage in critical discourse with an elected official with true political power.”
“This is at odds with CBHillel’s repeated demands for a campus culture open to dialogue, especially given that this discussion is about the very issue that sparked such demands,” the group wrote in its statement.
The protest came after President Donald Trump said earlier this week that “Federal Funding will STOP for any College, School, or University that allows illegal protests.”
A crowd gathers outside Columbia University to protest a visit by former Israeli Prime Minister Naftali Bennett March 4, 2025. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu)
On Monday, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Department of Education (ED) and the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) announced a review of Columbia’s federal contracts and grants in light of recent anti-Israel protests “for potential violations of Title VI of the Civil Rights Act,” according to an HHS press release.
The Federal Government’s Task Force to Combat Anti-Semitism is considering halting $51.4 million in federal government contracts to the university, HHS said. The task force will also review more than $5 billion in federal grant commitments to the Ivy League university.
“Antisemitism — like racism — is a spiritual and moral malady that sickens societies and kills people with lethalities comparable to history’s most deadly plagues,” HHS Secretary Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. said in a statement Monday. “In recent years, the censorship and false narratives of woke cancel culture have transformed our great universities into greenhouses for this deadly and virulent pestilence. Making America healthy means building communities of trust and mutual respect, based on speech freedom and open debate.”
Anti-Israel and pro-Israel demonstrators confront each other outside Columbia University March 4, 2025. (Mostafa Bassim/Anadolu)
Hamas and Israel’s recent ceasefire deal, which paused the deadly war, has led Hamas to release 10 Israeli hostages and five Thai nationals abducted on Oct. 7, 2023, in exchange for Palestinian prisoners and increased humanitarian aid into Gaza. Six Americans remain in Gaza.
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More than 46,000 Palestinians have died in the war, half of whom are believed to be women and children, though that number could be higher, according to the Palestinian Health Ministry. More than 90% of the roughly two million Palestinians living in Gaza were displaced during the war.
Fox News’ Alexis McAdams, Sandy Ibrahim and Madison Colombo contributed to this report.
Audrey Conklin is a digital reporter for Fox News Digital and FOX Business. Email tips to [email protected] or on Twitter at @audpants.