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Chants of “Free Mahmoud Khalil” were shouted by the protestors. They also unfurled banners that read “Never Again for Anyone” and “Jews Say Do Not Comply”.
Demonstrators from the group Jewish Voice for Peace protest inside Trump Tower in support of Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil. (AP)
Nearly 100 demonstrators were arrested after they gathered at Trump Tower in Manhattan on Thursday to denounce the arrest of Palestinian activist and Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil. The US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detained Khalil over his involvement in pro-Palestinian demonstrations at Columbia University.
The protest, organised by Jewish Voice for Peace, saw demonstrators dressed in red shirts that read “Not in our Name” and “Jews Say Stop Arming Israel”, crammed into the Tower’s iconic golden atrium,CNN reported.
Chants of “Free Mahmoud Khalil” were shouted by the protestors. They also unfurled banners that read “Never Again for Anyone” and “Jews Say Do Not Comply”.
According to the New York Police Department, 98 people were later arrested and 50 were led from the lobby in zip ties and placed into awaiting police vehicles. No injuries or property damage was reported.
An organizer livestreamed the protest from the balcony overlooking the atrium of Trump Tower.
As the NYPD moved in to arrest the demonstrators, they began chanting, “Free Palestine,” and “the whole world is watching.”
Notaly, the protest comes days after Khalil was detained by federal agents at his home in New York after the Trump administration revoked his green card.
Following this, Trump took to his Truth social handle and wrote, “If you support terrorism …. your presence is contrary to our national and foreign policy interests, and you are not welcome here.”
Meanwhile, it is also learnt that Columbia University has expelled, suspended or temporarily revoked the degrees of students who barricaded themselves in Hamilton Hall in April 2024.
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