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Arrests Made After Pro-Hamas Agitators Once More Take Over Columbia, This Time During Finals Week

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  May 07, 2025 6:15 PM

Update: Later on Wednesday evening, after terrorist sympathizers had already been taking over Columbia's library for hours, the university's finally made a written request for police to come in. Multiple people were arrested as pro-Hamas agitators were led out in handcuffs. 

Original: Pro-Hamas agitators have been particularly out of hand when it comes to taking over higher places of learning, such as once fine institutions at places like Columbia University and its sister school of Barnard College. Earlier on Wednesday, they once more showed up to cause mayhem at the library at Columbia, where students were studying for finals. 

While the agitators have been able to get away with plenty before, with consequences often being delayed or lacking, the university appeared to at least be trying to use a different approach this time. 

Rather than allowing the terrorist sympathizers flee the building, and presumably consequences, public safety officers announced that they would be requiring masked protester to show their ID cards, or else they would face arrest. Nevertheless, it looks to have been too little too late. 

Even still, chaos reigned supreme, as someone pulled the fire alarm the fire alarm. Even before then, the pro-Hamas agitators were still making demands, according to Shoshana Aufzien, a Barnard College student who has posted about such activity before at the school, including when it took place as students were studying for their midterms.

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Making the situation even more tense, the agitators were reportedly blocking the emergency exists. In sharing Aufzien's post, Eyal Yakoby also lamented how "the officers will be forced to let them all evacuate the building immediately, without the opportunity to check their IDs," adding that "Columbia once again has completely failed."

In one post, Aufizen mentioned being "terrified," as the agitators were "assaulting and trying to trample Public Safety officers outside of Butler Library."

The takeover from pro-Hamas agitators on Wednesday took place the very same day that the House Committee on Education & Workforce held a hearing examine the rampant antisemitism on college campuses. The hearing was entitled "Beyond the Ivy League: Stopping the Spread of Antisemitism on American Campuses," highlighting how widespread the concern is, with the presidents of Haverford College, DePaul University, and California Polytechnic State University being among those called to testify. 

The Committee's X account addressed the takeover at Columbia, which included footage of students being unable to get into the library to study for dinals. "Students are paying $90k a year for this. Taxpayers are paying billions a year for this," the post fromYakoby read. 

Columbia and other similar institutions have also been under considerable scrutiny from the Trump administration for the rampant antisemitism going on at the campuses. The administration canceled the university's grants back in March and Columbia has since announced that they will lay off 180 faculty members due to the cuts. 

The layoffs were also brought up again over X on Wednesday with regards to sharing the footage of the pro-Hamas takeover. "The masked mob doesn't care who gets directly hurt by their actions. Until they see real consequences - arrests, expulsion, deportation - nothing will ever change," Joel M. Petlin mentioned in his post. 

"Columbia" and "Butler Library" have both been trending over X on Wednesday, thanks to the takeover from the terrorist sympathizers.