NYPD arrest suspect in assault on Columbia Jewish student

Manhattan resident Tarek Bazrouk, 20, was arrested by the NYPD for allegedly stealing an Israeli flag and punching a Jewish student.

By MICHAEL STARR DECEMBER 17, 2024 20:31

A demonstrator holds a placard as students from Columbia University protest outside the offices of University Trustees in New York City on May 7. (photo credit: BRENDAN MCDERMID/REUTERS)

A man was arrested and charged on Monday for allegedly punching a Jewish Columbia University student during an anti-Israel protest last week, according to the New York Police Department. 

Manhattan resident Tarek Bazrouk, 20, was arrested by the NYPD and charged with robbery in the third-degree, and robbery in the third-degree hate crime.

At last Monday's protest against Barnard College by the Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD), a 22-year-old male victim reportedly entered into a verbal dispute with the suspect. 

The NYPD said that the suspect made antisemitic remarks and then grabbed the victim's Israeli flag. When the victim attempted to retrieve the flag, the suspect punched him in the face and then fled the scene.

The crime is being investigated by the NYPD Hate Crime Task Force, and the educational institution said there was no indication the suspect was affiliated with the university.

PRO-PALESTINIAN DEMONSTRATORS hold a rally at Columbia University in New York City on the first anniversary of the October 7 Hamas attack, last month. Europe is failing to control Islamic fundamentalism within its borders, and countries such as the United States, the UK, and Canada are following su (credit: Mike Segar/Reuters)

Columbia University’s Office of Public Affairs said last Tuesday that there was no indication that the suspect was affiliated with the university. 

Columbia condemned the incident 

“We want to be absolutely clear that any act of violence against a member of our community is unacceptable,” said the university.

New York Gov. Kathy Hochul said last Tuesday that she was outraged by the “antisemitic attack," and last Wednesday, Congressman Ritchie Torres described the university as "ground zero" for campus antisemitism in New York.

CUAD had held the protest against Barnard in an attempt to pressure trustees of what it saw as the "weak link" of Columbia University.

“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 advocating for the adoption of anti-Israel policies.