White House says Columbia is 'refusing to help' track pro-Hamas activists for deportations
The White House has said that Columbia University is not aiding the federal government in tracking down anti-Israel protesters who could be subject to deportation.
On March 11, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the Columbia administration is 'refusing to help' the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) identify the individuals.
The White House has said that Columbia University is not aiding the federal government in tracking down anti-Israel protesters who could be subject to deportation.
On March 11, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt stated that the Columbia administration is “refusing to help” the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) identify the individuals, as reported by The New York Post.
“Columbia University has been given the names of other individuals who have engaged in pro-Hamas activity, and they are refusing to help DHS identify those individuals on campus,” Leavitt said at the briefing.
“As the president said very strongly in his statement yesterday, he is not going to tolerate that,” Leavitt added, as noted by The Times of Israel.
Leavitt added that the federal government has been “using intelligence” to identify people involved in “pro-Hamas” campus activities.
Last week, the Trump administration announced that it would begin deporting pro-Hamas individuals. “We will be revoking the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated on March 9.
Earlier this month, Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) arrested and attempted to deport Mahmoud Khalil, a pro-Palestine, former Columbia graduate student.
“On March 9, 2025, in support of President Trump’s executive orders prohibiting anti-Semitism, and in coordination with the Department of State, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested Mahmoud Khalil, a former Columbia University graduate student,” DHS announced on March 9. “Khalil led activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.”
“ICE and the Department of State are committed to enforcing President Trump’s executive orders and to protecting U.S. national security,” it concluded.
Khalil’s attempted deportation shortly followed the Trump administration’s decision to terminate around $400 million in federal grants to Columbia due to the school’s alleged inability to crack down on anti-Israel activity.
“Freezing the funds is one of the tools we are using to respond to this spike in anti-Semitism,” Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights Leo Terrell stated. “This is only the beginning.”
“Columbia University, through their continued and shameful inaction to stop radical protestors from taking over buildings on campus and lack of response to the safety issues for Jewish students, and for that matter - all students - are not upholding the ideals of this Administration or the American people,” Federal Acquisition Service Commissioner Josh Gruenbaum added.
Campus Reform has contacted Columbia University for comment. This article will be updated accordingly.
