A Jewish student from Columbia University reported an alarming incident where he and his friends felt overwhelmed by an aggressive anti-Israeli mob that took over the library. According to him, “It felt like a stampede.” He recounted how he and a friend were pushed into the crowd. At one point, while in the library lobby, he was elbowed in the ribs by a protester. This student, who is from Israel, shared his experience with Fox News Digital.
He described a chaotic scene inside Butler Library, where hundreds of masked demonstrators flooded the area even as public safety officers attempted to manage the situation. PhD students observed that safety officials managed to contain the crowd after about 10 to 15 minutes, but not without attempts from the protesters to push through from multiple directions.
The student expressed his disbelief at the aggressive behavior of the mob, explaining that the demonstrators wore masks and aggressively pushed into the space. Eventually, public safety escorted him to a more secure area, but he experienced further aggression when a woman, as she passed by, elbowed him in the ribs.
This same student mentioned he wasn’t new to such hostility, having faced anti-Semitic remarks during previous incidents. “I was called a genocider and a permanent victim yesterday,” he recounted. Acting Columbia University President Claire Shipman condemned the demonstrations as “completely unacceptable.” The protestors were seen defacing security cameras and chanting slogans that disrupted students who were trying to prepare for exams.
Witnesses, including Jewish and Israeli students, reported seeing threatening messages, such as “Colombia burn four,” written in the library. Some demonstrators verbally attacked a Jewish student attempting to enter, creating a truly hostile environment.
Another student, Josh Segal, noted that the unfolding chaos shocked him. He had just left for coffee when the protest began, recalling protesters chanting the name of the Al-Kassam Brigade, Hamas’s armed wing responsible for violent attacks. “It was complete pandemonium. Everyone was in total shock,” said Eden Yadegar, a senior, reflecting on how students were forced to abandon their studying.
Yadegar, who is pursuing dual majors in Jewish and Middle Eastern studies, called for action against the demonstrators, calling their representation of events misleading while also describing the chaotic scene. “Eighty people were arrested,” added Yadegar, viewing this as a necessary move for the university.
In conclusion, Yadegar emphasized that the behavior of some protestors needed to be addressed, characterizing their actions as not just disruptive but also indicative of deeper issues within the campus climate. “They’re misrepresenting a serious situation,” she stated, urging university officials to take action against this kind of hostility.
