Columbia University

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Judge Releases Student Arrested at Naturalization Interview

Mohsen Mahdawi was arrested by ICE agents on April 14

(Newser) - A Columbia University student who was detained by immigration authorities on April 14 was released on bail Wednesday on a federal judge's orders. Mohsen Mahdawi was arrested by ICE agents at an immigration office in Colchester, Vermont, when he showed up for a naturalization interview. He is Palestinian, grew...

ICE Blocked Mahmoud Khalil From His Son's Birth

Columbia grad student is a new dad, but ICE rejected his request to witness firstborn's arrival in New York

(Newser) - Mahmoud Khalil is a new dad, but he'll have to wait to see his firstborn. The Columbia University grad student and legal permanent resident, who was detained in March by federal agents over his pro-Palestinian stance, missed his son's birth on Monday in New York after officials...

Another College Student Detained by ICE Officers
College Student Arrested
at Naturalization Interview
the rundown
Apr 15, 2025 12:37 PM CDT

College Student Arrested at Naturalization Interview

Mohsen Mahdawi led Palestinian protests at Columbia

(Newser) - Another college student who led pro-Palestinian protests has been detained by immigration officers. Lawyers for Mohsen Mahdawi were scrambling on Tuesday to prevent him from being deported to the West Bank, where he was born. Details:
  • Mahdawi was arrested Monday at an immigration office in Colchester, Vermont, when he showed
...

Harvard's Resistance to Trump Could Mark a 'Turning Point'

Former President Obama blasts 'unlawful and ham-handed attempt to stifle academic freedom'

(Newser) - Academics, alumni, Democratic lawmakers, and former President Obama are backing Harvard's costly decision to resist what it says is "direct governmental regulation" of intellectual conditions at the university. Obama, a graduate of Harvard Law School, blasted the Trump administration's "unlawful and ham-handed attempt to stifle academic...

After Bowing to Trump, University Makes Change

Interim President Katrina Armstrong had just announced Columbia agreed to administration's ultimatum

(Newser) - Columbia University, which acquiesced to a Trump administration ultimatum last week that preserved funding and has been dealing with the backlash since, is now on its third president since August. Katrina Armstrong, who held the job on an interim basis, announced her resignation Friday evening, the New York Times reports....

Judge: ICE Cannot Detain Columbia Student Protester

Yunseo Chung, 21, is fighting deportation efforts

(Newser) - A federal judge on Tuesday ordered that the Trump administration's attempts to arrest and deport a 21-year-old Columbia University student who participated in pro-Palestinian protests must cease. The judge found there to be no indication Yunseo Chung—a legal permanent resident who was arrested at a protest earlier this...

After 'Extraordinary Ultimatum,' Columbia Caves

Ivy League updates rules on protests, masks amid threats by Trump administration

(Newser) - Columbia University agreed Friday to put its Middle East studies department under new supervision and overhaul its rules for protests and student discipline, acquiescing to an extraordinary ultimatum by the Trump administration to implement those and other changes or risk losing billions of dollars in federal funding.
  • Backstory: Earlier this
...

White House Moves Against Another Ivy League School

University of Pennsylvania funding is paused over its athletic policies for trans athletes

(Newser) - Another big-name university is in the crosshairs of the Trump administration, this time over transgender policies.
  • Penn: The White House said Wednesday it is pausing $175 million in federal funding to the University of Pennsylvania because of its athletic policies on trans athletes, reports NBC News . The policies are "
...

Columbia Chief 'Heartbroken' as DHS Agents Enter Dorms

Agents searched 2 student residences—and it's not the only university in the government's sights

(Newser) - As former Columbia University grad student Mahmoud Khalil fights the Trump administration's plans to deport him for his past pro-Palestine activism at the New York City institution, the school itself contended with more federal activity on campus this week. The New York Times reports that agents from the Department...

Columbia Moves Against Protesters Who Occupied Hall

University expels unspecified number of students over 2024 actions

(Newser) - Columbia University says it has expelled or suspended some students who took over a campus building during pro-Palestinian protests last spring, and has temporarily revoked the diplomas of some students who have since graduated. In a campus-wide email sent Thursday, the university said its judicial board had issued the sanctions...

Mahmoud Khalil Will Remain Jailed in Louisiana

Judge says Columbia protest leader must be allowed to speak to his lawyers

(Newser) - Mahmoud Khalil will remain detained in Louisiana until at least next week but can finally speak to lawyers while they fight the Trump administration's plans to deport the Columbia University graduate student for his role in campus protests against Israel, a judge decided at a hearing Wednesday. The brief...

Columnist Likens Columbia Arrest to McCarthyism
Analysts Break Down
Controversial Columbia Arrest
the rundown
Mar 11, 2025 8:59 AM CDT

Analysts Break Down Controversial Columbia Arrest

One columnist draws a comparison to McCarthyism of the 1950s

(Newser) - The arrest of Mahmoud Khalil , a Syrian national who led pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University last year, has set off a furious debate about free-speech protections. Coverage:
  • Khalil was arrested by federal immigration agents in New York over the weekend and is believed to be detained in an immigration jail
...

Judge Halts Deportation of Pro-Palestinian Protest Leader

Mahmoud Khalil has already reportedly been taken from New York to Louisiana

(Newser) - The deportation of Mahmoud Khalil , one of the leaders of pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University, has been halted by a federal judge. Judge Jesse Furman of the Southern District of New York issued the order Monday and scheduled a hearing in the case for Wednesday. Khalil, who is a legal...

Protest Leader at Columbia Now Faces Deportation
Protest Leader at Columbia
Now Faces Deportation
THE RUNDOWN
Mar 10, 2025 11:57 AM CDT

Protest Leader at Columbia Now Faces Deportation

Mahmoud Khalil arrested by ICE agents under new crackdown

(Newser) - A former Columbia University grad student and Palestinian activist who helped organize anti-Israel protests at the school was arrested in his university-owned apartment over the weekend by Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents, reports the AP , which calls the move "a significant escalation in the Trump administration's pledge to...

Columbia Becomes First to Lose Funding Under Trump Directive

Administration says college has failed to stop antisemitism on campus

(Newser) - The Trump administration said Friday that it's pulling $400 million from Columbia University, canceling grants and contracts because of what the government describes as the Ivy League school's failure to squelch antisemitism on campus. The notice came five days after federal agencies announced they were considering orders to...

Suit: Colleges Exploited Students of Divorce Seeking Financial Aid

Harvard, Yale among schools listed in antitrust complaint; College Board also named as defendant

(Newser) - A current Boston University student has teamed up with a Cornell alum to go after dozens of elite private universities that they say conspired to overcharge students, including by exploiting those who had divorced parents. Reuters reports that the proposed class-action lawsuit filed Monday in Illinois names 40 top schools—...

After Little More Than a Year, Columbia President Resigns

Minouche Shafik cited the toll the position has taken on her family

(Newser) - After just over a year in the position, Minouche Shafik abruptly resigned as president of Columbia University Wednesday. Shafik, who stepped into the role in July of last year and was the school's first female president, had faced criticism from multiple sides for her handling of protests related to...

3 Columbia Deans Lose Posts Over 'Antisemitic Tropes'

All have been placed on leave amid investigation

(Newser) - Columbia University has another controversy on its hands related to its treatment of the campus' Jewish community. Three deans have been removed from their posts and placed on indefinite leave after the university said they sent texts to each other that "disturbingly touched on ancient antisemitic tropes," reports...

Charges Dropped Against Most Columbia Building Occupiers

Another 14 were offered a deal but turned it down

(Newser) - Two-thirds of the pro-Palestinian protesters arrested over the occupation of Columbia's Hamilton Hall on April 30 saw their charges dropped by New York prosecutors on Thursday. The move applies to 31 of the 46 students and staff who were arrested and hit with the misdemeanor charge of trespass in...

Columbia Law Review Website Pulled Offline Over Essay by Palestinian

Board says the move is a temporary one

(Newser) - The Columbia Law Review website has been taken offline after an article by a Palestinian human rights lawyer was published there. As of this writing, the website URL leads to a page reading simply, "Website is under maintenance." The university's law review is, per the New York ...

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