Columbia alumni group exposed for targeting pro-Palestine students

A private WhatsApp group of Columbia University alumni and far-right Zionists have been exposed as a hub for efforts to identify, target, and potentially deport students and faculty involved in protests in solidarity with Palestine.

According to a report published by The Intercept, members of the group, which includes more than 1,000 individuals, have actively discussed how to report pro-Palestine protesters to law enforcement and US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

The group, Columbia Alumni for Israel, has frequently targeted Palestinian, Arab, and Muslim students, suggesting that their protests are signs of "support for Hamas" and calling for deportations of foreign students involved, according to the screenshots from the group obtained by The Intercept.

The group had already been discussing deporting Gaza protesters, but after President Donald Trump's executive order, "Additional Measures to Combat Anti-Semitism," which paved the way for the deportation of students involved in pro-Palestine demonstrations, members circulated flyers promoting a pro-Palestine January 21 walkout, the report said.

One exchange, cited in the report, reveals group members strategising how to help ICE identify students on visas by sharing photos and utilising advanced technology to do so.

Lynne Bursky-Tammam, a former assistant professor at Columbia's Teachers College, was quoted as saying, "Identifying the Columbia student-Hamas-sympathisers who show up is key to deporting those with student visas."

'We have to get rid of them'

Victor Muslin, another alumnus, responded by urging group members to identify students who may be involved in the protests.

"If there are photos of someone who needs to be identified (even with a partially obscured face), I have access to tech that may be able to help," Muslin stated, according to The Intercept report, citing screenshots from the WhatsApp group.

In late January, a group member shared an article about students protesting Israel's murder of six-year-old Hind Rajab, and Bursky-Tammam responded, questioning who funded the protesters and stating, "Arresting them for hate crimes is not enough. We have to get rid of them."

The Intercept said Bursky-Tammam declined to comment on the report and Muslin did not respond to requests for comment. Anadolu news agency was unable to independently verify the WhatsApp messages.

In January, Trump issued an executive order ordering the US government to use "all available and appropriate legal tools" to combat anti-Semitism, including prosecuting and removing those accused of "unlawful anti-Semitic harassment".

Student-led anti-war demonstrations erupted on college campuses in response to Israel's genocidal war on Gaza, which has killed nearly 62,000 people, mostly women and children, wounded more than 110,000 and uprooted most of 2.3 million people multiple times.

Targeting US citizens through other legal means

Although the majority of students involved in the protests are US citizens and thus exempt from deportation, the group members discussed tactics for targeting them through other legal means, including "material support for terror organisations."

Civil rights organisations, including the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, have voiced alarm over what they see as an infringement on students' First Amendment rights.

"It's a very dangerous precedent," said Abed Ayoub, executive director of the committee, emphasizing the broader effort to silence Palestinian and Arab voices critical of Israel's actions in Gaza.

Columbia University has faced intense criticism for its handling of protests, particularly after president Nemat "Minouche" Shafik called in the New York Police Department to disperse pro-Palestine demonstrators on campus in April 2024.

The move sparked a wave of pro-Palestine protests at universities in New York City and nationwide, with thousands of students standing in solidarity with Columbia students and calling on their universities for total divestment from Israel.

Anadolu reached out to Columbia University for comment on the report and inquired whether any students had been deported but did not receive an immediate response.

Open letter against student deportations

Meanwhile, a group of Columbia students, postdocs, and alumni from Israel published an open letter, saying they "vehemently object" to US President Donald Trump's January 29 executive order.

"Although this directive claims to defend us — Jewish and Israeli students — we unequivocally declare that this act does not protect us." the letter said.

"While it is crucial to combat antisemitism, the Trump administration's executive order attempts to silence political criticism of Israel’s actions by dangerously conflating all forms of criticism of Israel with antisemitism."

"We reject the order's immoral threat of deportation of our fellow Columbia students and recognise that this action would instead sever vital relationships that Israeli and Palestinian students are nurturing at a pivotal moment in history," the group said.