Jewish Columbia student punched in face by anti-Israel activist

New York Governor Kathy Hochul said on Tuesday that she was outrage by the "antisemitic attack" and announced that the New York State Hate Crime Task Force would aid in the investigation.

By MICHAEL STARR DECEMBER 12, 2024 21:28

Pro-Palestinian protestors hold a rally outside of Columbia University on April 30, 2024 in New York City. (photo credit: MICHAEL M. SANTIAGO/GETTY IMAGES)

A Jewish Columbia University student was punched in the face by an anti-Israel activist during a protest against Barnard College on Monday, according to New York officials and local Jewish groups. 

Columbia University Public Safety Department said that the New York Police Department informed them of a robbery and hate crime in which an anti-Israel activist stole a student's Israeli flag. When the student pursued the suspect, the thief punched the victim in the face. The crime is being investigated by the NYPD Hate Crime Task Force, and the university said that there was no indication that the suspect was affiliated with the university.

New York Governor Kathy Hochul said on Tuesday that she was outrage by the "antisemitic attack" and announced that the New York State Hate Crime Task Force would aid in the investigation.

"We will make sure the assailant is held accountable and that all New Yorkers are protected," Hochul said on social media.

Congressman Ritchie Torres on Wednesday described the university as "ground zero" for campus antisemitism in New York.

Ritchie Torres seen during the Jerusalem Post Annual Conference in New York, June 3, 2024 (credit: MARC ISRAEL SELLEM)

"The State of New York confers accreditation and generous tax benefits on Columbia University. Yet nothing substantive has been done to hold Columbia accountable for fundamentally failing to protect its Jewish students," Torres noted on social media.

Davidai criticizes university admin for failing to address pro-terror threats

Columbia Assistant Professor Shai Davidai criticized the university administration for failing to heed his warnings about escalating threats since the institution had become the epicenter of post-October 7 campus protests.

"This assault didn't come out of nowhere. It came from a pro-Hamas protest organized by the Students for Justice in Palestine at Columbia University," Davidai said on X. "It came from 13 months of hatred, demonization, and indoctrination, especially for observant, and thus more visible, Jews. It came from 13 months of the administration looking the other way. Columbia must start enacting rules inside campus and among their terrorist support cell."

Columbia Faculty and Staff Supporting Israel expressed anger, asserting that there had been double standards in the attention given to the attack in comparison to an incident in which a pro-Israel student sprayed novelty fart spray at a pro-Palestinian rally. Columbia AFSI said on social media that the assault occurred during a Columbia University Apartheid Divest protest, the same organization that had organized incidents like the April Hamilton Hall occupation.

CUAD organized the Monday protest against Barnard College because it saw it as the "weak link" of Columbia University.

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"On the road to divestment, Barnard will be the first domino to fall — an instrumental piece in toppling the entire university," CUAD said in a December 7 Instagram post. "Barnard College relies almost entirely on these imperial feminist trustees (read: murderers) as it drowns in its own poor financial decisions, millions of dollars in debt, and an endowment significantly smaller than Columbia’s. So, we’ll make it impossible for these trustees to continue their genocidal reigns."

CUAD said that Barnard was financially dependent on its trustees like Francine LeFrak, Cheryl Milstein, and Diana Vagelos, and that "If Barnard will only listen to its trustees, it is our duty to target its trustees."

CUAD was also involved with Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine's new student paper The Columbia Intifada, which was announced on December 4. Torres said on December 8 that the publication showed how inundated the university was with anti-Israel propaganda.