Homeland Security agents conducted searches in a pair of students’ rooms at Columbia University on Thursday, resulting in Katrina Armstrong, the interim president of the school, sharing that she was “heartbroken” in an update to the campus community.
“I am writing heartbroken to inform you that we had federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security in two University residences tonight,” she wrote. “No one was arrested or detained. No items were removed, and no further action was taken.”
The DHS agents served Columbia with two judicial search warrants signed by a federal magistrate judge, which met the university’s requirements for law enforcement to enter non-public areas.
Details surrounding the rooms searched and the purpose of the search were not immediately available.
COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY PUNISHES STUDENTS WHO TOOK OVER BUILDING DURING ANTI-ISRAEL PROTESTSÂ
Columbia University’s interim President Katrina Armstrong shared in a letter to the school’s community Thursday night that she was “heartbroken” by Homeland Security agents searching two students’ rooms on campus. (APÂ )
“The University is obligated to comply with the law,” Armstrong said, in part. “Our University Public Safety was present at all times.”
She added that Columbia will “make every effort” to ensure the campus and everyone on it is safe, adding that the school is “committed to upholding the law” and she expects “city, state and federal agencies to do the same.”
“I understand the immense stress our community is under. Despite the unprecedented challenges, Columbia University will remain a place where the pursuit of knowledge is cherished and fiercely protected, where the rule of law and due process is respected and never taken for granted, and where all members of our community are valued and able to thrive. These are the principles we uphold and that guide us every day,” Armstrong said.
Columbia University was rocked by anti-Israel protests for most of 2024 as students and other participants protested Israel’s war in Gaza prompted by Hamas’ Oct. 7, 2023, attack on the Jewish State. (Getty Images)
The searches come less than a week after anti-Israel agitator Mahmoud Khalil, 30, was arrested by ICE at his university-owned apartment for his alleged involvement in the massive anti-Israel protests at Columbia last year. He is now in ICE custody in Louisiana.
WHO IS MAHMOUD KHALIL, THE ANTI-ISRAEL COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY ACTIVIST ICE ARRESTED?
Khalil is a permanent U.S. resident, but is Palestinian and was raised in Syria. He is married to an American citizen who is currently eight months pregnant.
When he was arrested, DHS said it was to protect U.S. national security, saying that Khalil “led activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.”
Mahmoud Khalil speaking at an anti-Israel encampment on the Columbia University campus in New York on April 29, 2024. (AP Photo/Ted Shaffrey, file)
Khalil’s attorney, Ramsi Kassem, said his client was “identified, targeted and detained” because of his advocacy for Palestinian rights and his protected speech. He said Khalil has no criminal convictions, but “for some reason, is being detained.”
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White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt defended the Trump administration’s decision to arrest Khalil and said he distributed pro-Hamas propaganda fliers on campus.
Fox News Digital’s Michael Dorgan contributed to this report.
