Barnard staff hospitalized by anti-Israel activists invading campus building

Anti-Israel activists claimed that Barnard will negotiate with them about the expulsion of two students for class disruptions.

 A PRO-PALESTINIAN demonstrator holds a sign that reads, ‘Glory to the martyrs, victory to the resistance,’ on Columbia University campus, on the first anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel. Fundamentalist Islam and Palestinian violence do not represent all Islam and Palestinian, the writer says (photo credit: Mike Segar/Reuters)
A PRO-PALESTINIAN demonstrator holds a sign that reads, ‘Glory to the martyrs, victory to the resistance,’ on Columbia University campus, on the first anniversary of the Hamas attack on Israel. Fundamentalist Islam and Palestinian violence do not represent all Islam and Palestinian, the writer says
(photo credit: Mike Segar/Reuters)

A Barnard College staff member was hospitalized Wednesday night after being allegedly assaulted by a group of masked anti-Israel protesters who invaded a campus building and occupied it for several hours to demand the rescinding of two students' expulsion for disrupting an Israeli history class.

Columbia Apartheid Divest Coalition, which had on Saturday threatened to organize demonstrations in response to the expulsions of activists, claimed on Instagram on Wednesday that a security officer had assaulted and grabbed students.

Dozens of keffiyeh-clad activists entered Milbank Hall, according to Wednesday statements by Barnard College Strategic Communications Vice President Robin Levine and Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine, issuing demands and encouraging others to enter the campus without registering their identification. CUAD said that they had "taken the administration completely off guard."

Columbia SJP listed demands on X, with the chief issue being the immediate reversal of last Friday's expulsions of two students for participation in the January 21 protest of Columbia University's  History of Modern Israel course. The  activists also called for the establishment of a new transparent disciplinary process and a public meeting with Dean Leslie Grinage and President Laura Rosenbury.

"Disruption until divestment, resistance until return, agitation until amnesty," warned activists on social media and physical flyers. "We will not stop until our demands are met. Free Palestine."

Photographs posted by Columbia SJP showed that had posted their demands and Palestinian flags on the hallway walls, as well as vandalizing the building interior with graffiti that included the slogan "Barnard funds genocide."

For at least six hours, the activists occupied the administrative offices, restricting the movement of employees and cancelling classes while chanting and drumming. Video published by Columbia SJP showed student activists jeering at Grinage as she passed through the crowd after allegedly asking for permission to use the bathroom.

"Guess who has the upper hand now?" The SJP chapter remarked on X.

Levine said that Barnard had "made multiple good-faith efforts to de-escalate" and college leadership had offered to meet with protesters if they removed their masks. According to CUAD, Grinage had also proposed to meet with a maximum of three activists with no legal observer, and with a security officer present. CUAD said that such conditions raised concerns about doxing, harassment, "transparency, safety, and fairness."


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The activists groups also said that they had rejected demands by the administration for non-students "outside agitators" to leave.

"We will not let Barnard, administrators, faculty, or press dictate OUR movement. Inside, we are ALL outside agitators," CUAD said on Instagram.

CUAD and SJP claimed on social media that the administration had been forced to the negotiating table for a Thursday meeting, leading to the dissolution of the "sit-in."

 Columbia University Apartheid Divest telegram (credit: screenshot)
Columbia University Apartheid Divest telegram (credit: screenshot)

Levine denied that any promises of amnesty or concessions were negotiated in a Thursday statement, and that students had dispersed after being issued warnings.

"The masked protesters left Milbank Hall after receiving final written notice and being informed that Barnard would be forced to consider additional necessary measures to protect the campus if they did not leave on their own," said Levine.

Rosenbury in a Wednesday statement castigated the protesters for attempting to "undermine Barnard’s core values of respect, inclusion, and academic excellence."

"Let us be clear: their disregard for the safety of our community remains completely unacceptable," said Rosenbury.

Columbia University's Public Affairs Offices said in a Wednesday statement that the disruption of academic activities was unacceptable, but it was not responsible for its affiliate's security.

The House Committee on Education and Workforce said on X Wednesday that Barnard was right to expel the two students who were involved in the distribution of flyers that included calls to “Crush Zionism,” and depicted a boot stepping on a broken Star of David.

"Negotiating with pro-terror protestors who are breaking campus policies should be out of the question," the committee said.

'Green light' to continued violence

Combat Antisemitism Movement CEO Sacha Roytman Dratwa warned in a Thursday statement that if Barnard succumbed to "outrageous and violent threats" and reinstated the expelled students, it would give a "green light" to continued violence.

As the protesters still held positions in the campus building, the Antidefamation League New York and New Jersey called for the college to uphold its code of conduct. The American Jewish Committee said that the "tired antics" of Wednesday night were tactics "pulled from the playbook of the last 16 months at this school."

Knesset Member Dan Illouz, who had just a week ago met with Jewish Columbia University students, called for "Immediate and decisive action" to "restore order and protect Jewish students."

"Pro-terror extremists have crossed every red line—seizing buildings by force, attacking staff, and calling for an intifada," Illouz said in a Thursday statement. This is not a protest; it is terrorism. The free world cannot stand idly by as universities become breeding grounds for violent incitement."

The two expelled Barnard students had been identified by Columbia for their involvement in the January 21 class disruption. A third activist, identified as a Columbia student on January 23, was interim suspended pending a full investigation and disciplinary process.

CUAD had responded by calling for further disruptions of "Zionist" classes. The Columbia University Public Affairs Office on Monday condemned the call for class disruptions, warning that it would not be tolerated.