Homeland Security raids 2 Columbia University dorms rooms after Khalil ICE arrest; president's house vandalized

Cayla Bamberger and Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News on Mar 14, 2025

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NEW YORK — The Department of Homeland Security raided the dorm rooms of two Columbia University students on Thursday night, just days after authorities detained a prominent pro-Palestinian activist in university housing.

In an email, Interim President Katrina Armstrong wrote that she was “heartbroken” to inform students and faculty of the federal agents’ visit. The students were not arrested or detained, she said. As of Friday morning, no further action had been taken.

“The University has a clear protocol in place,” Armstrong wrote, linking to guidance on “Potential Visits to Campus By U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) Agents.”

“Consistent with this protocol, our longstanding practice, and the practices of cities and institutions throughout the country, the University requires that law enforcement have a judicial warrant to enter non-public University areas, including residential University buildings. Tonight, that threshold was met.”

An hour after Armstrong’s email, protesters vandalized the university president’s mansion on Morningside Park with splattered red paint and the black spray-painted message “Free Them All,” police said.

It was not clear if Armstrong was inside the building when the vandalism happened. There were no arrests.

Later Friday, the Trump administration confirmed the State Department had revoked the visa of a Columbia University student and federal immigration officials arrested a Palestinian protester for overstaying an expired student visa.

On March 5, the student visa for Ranjani Srinivasan — a doctoral student in urban planning at Columbia — was revoked over alleged involvement in “activities supporting Hamas,” a U.S.-designed terrorist organization, according to the Department of Homeland Security.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement authorities arrested another protester, Leqaa Kordia, who is from the West Bank, for remaining in the United States after her student visa had expired. Federal officials said Kordia lost her visa more than three years ago for a “lack of attendance.”

The Trump administration has put Columbia on notice for not helping DHS arrest college students it accused of supporting Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist organization.

“Columbia University has been given the names of other individuals who have engaged in pro-Hamas activity,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a press briefing on Tuesday, “and they are refusing to help DHS identify those individuals on campus.”

“We expect all (of) America’s colleges and universities to comply with this administration’s policy.”

DHS and ICE did not immediately return a request for comment.

The announcement of DHS on campus came after ICE on March 8 arrested Mahmoud Khalil, a recent international-studies graduate student and green card-holder, in his university-owned residence. The Trump administration has accused Khalil of leading activities aligned with Hamas. He has not been charged with any crime.

Armstrong’s emphasis on Columbia’s “longstanding practice” followed revelations of a letter from the Trump administration outlining steps the university should take to restore $400 million in canceled federal grants and contracts. Among other measures, three agencies directed Columbia to discipline protesters involved in last year’s demonstrations.

“The University must complete disciplinary proceedings for Hamilton Hall and encampments,” read the memo from Thursday, obtained by the Daily News. “Meaningful discipline means expulsion or multi-year suspension.”

The federal administration also directed Columbia to implement a mask ban with exceptions for health reasons, the placement of the Middle East, South Asian, and African Studies department under receivership, and “comprehensive admissions reform” of Columbia’s recruitment of international students.

The same day, Columbia announced the expulsions of several protesters involved in the building takeover.

Students organized two protests for Friday afternoon.