The US institution says it has banned attackers responsible for spraying a dangerous chemical at a pro-Palestinian rally.
Columbia University has banned several people accused of spraying pro-Palestinian protesters with a smelly chemical during a demonstration, the New York-based institution said.
In a statement emailed to Columbia students and faculty on Monday night, Interim Provost Dennis A Mitchell said the alleged perpetrators had been banned from campus after “what appear to have been serious crimes.” , possibly hate crimes.”
“The University received additional information on Sunday evening. As a result, the alleged perpetrators identified at the University were immediately removed from campus while the police investigation continues,” Mitchell wrote, according to the US media Rolling Stone.
Mitchell said the university condemned “in the strongest possible terms any threat or act of violence” directed against its community and described the incident as “deeply troubling.”
Columbia has asked anyone with photographs, videos or any other evidence of the event to submit it to the police department.
The university did not clarify whether those banned were students or how many people were involved.
The Columbia Spectator, a student newspaper, reported that protesters were attacked during a “divest now” demonstration on the steps of Low Library on Friday. At least three students required medical attention, while others reported physical symptoms such as burning eyes, headaches and nausea.
A police spokesperson told the New York Times that no arrests had been made.
According to Maryam Iqbal, an 18-year-old freshman interviewed by Rolling Stone, at least two men sprayed peaceful protesters with a foul-smelling liquid.
Another student, Layla Saliba, a 24-year-old Palestinian American, said the two men called some of the protesters “terrorists.” She added that they were “especially aggressive” toward students holding signs that read “Jews for Ceasefire,” calling them “self-hating Jews.”
Saliba told the American magazine that he was still vomiting and could still smell the odor after a dozen showers.
Tensions have risen at some American universities since the Palestinian group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel on October 7 and Israel responded with a declaration of war.
Members of the anti-Zionist Jewish organization Jewish Voice for Peace have reported being spat on and witnessing harassment on campus for their opinions.
Omar Shakir, Israel and Palestine director at Human Rights Watch (HRW), said the US university had twice canceled a speaking agreement due to a lack of “security clearances”.
In November, the Ivy League institution suspended the student groups Students for Justice in Palestine and Jewish Voice for Peace for allegedly violating school policies through “threatening rhetoric and intimidation.”
