New York (Agencies) — July 23, 2025: Columbia University has imposed sweeping disciplinary actions against nearly 80 students for their involvement in pro-Palestinian protests, including expulsions, multi-year suspensions, and revocation of academic degrees. The measures follow demonstrations against Israel’s military campaign in Gaza, which intensified on campus throughout 2024 and into 2025.
In a statement issued Tuesday, the university cited violations stemming from the occupation of Butler Library in May 2025 and the encampment during Alumni Weekend in spring 2024. Columbia’s Judicial Board described the actions as “disruptions to academic activities,” asserting that such violations “will necessarily generate consequences.”
The student activist group Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD) condemned the sanctions, calling them “unprecedented” and “excessive” compared to previous disciplinary responses to campus protests. “We will not be deterred. We are committed to the struggle for Palestinian liberation,” CUAD said in a statement.
The protests, which included sit-ins, teach-ins, and encampments, were part of a broader movement that spread across U.S. campuses in response to Israel’s ongoing military operations in Gaza. Columbia’s decision to allow hundreds of NYPD officers onto campus in 2024 to dismantle protest sites led to dozens of arrests and drew national attention.
Despite the crackdown, students returned to occupy Butler Library during final exams in May 2025, demanding the university divest from companies linked to the Israeli military and expressing solidarity with Palestinians.
The disciplinary actions come as Columbia negotiates with the Trump administration to restore $400 million in federal funding that was suspended in March 2025. The administration cited the university’s alleged failure to protect Jewish students from harassment and demanded reforms, including a revised definition of antisemitism and changes to the student disciplinary process.
Columbia’s acting president Claire Shipman faced backlash during the May graduation ceremony, where she was booed by students for her role in the university’s response to the protests.
Meanwhile, Mahmoud Khalil, a graduate student and prominent protest leader, met with lawmakers in Washington, DC, on Tuesday. Khalil was previously detained by immigration authorities in Louisiana amid the administration’s pledge to deport foreign pro-Palestinian activists.
The disciplinary measures were announced as humanitarian conditions in Gaza continue to deteriorate. Health officials reported that 15 people, including a six-week-old infant, died from starvation and malnutrition within a single day.