As Columbia University students returned for the fall semester, they were greeted by renewed protests and heightened security measures outside the iconic New York City campus, according to reporting by the BBC.
Pro-Palestinian demonstrators gathered at the school gates on Tuesday, the first day of classes, chanting "Free Palestine" and banging drums as they marched in circles. Many protesters wore traditional keffiyeh scarves covering their faces.
The scene was reminiscent of last semester's large-scale demonstrations against Israel's anti-terrorism operation in Gaza, which saw some of the most intense campus protests in the US.
Inside the campus, the Alma Mater statue outside Low Memorial Library was doused with red paint. CBS News, the BBC's US partner, reported that the area was cordoned off as crews worked to clean the statue.
Police reported at least two arrests on Tuesday but described the gatherings as "peaceful" overall.
Students and staff queued to have their identification thoroughly checked before entering campus, while protesters and onlookers were separated by metal barricades.
Many students appeared unfazed by the demonstrations. Stephanie Lee, a 28-year-old graduate student studying business, said she expected protests but felt "OK" on her first day. "Security is pretty good," she added.
Rachel Black, a freshman from North Carolina, viewed the protests as part of her educational experience at Columbia. "I'm interested in becoming more educated," she said. "I'm hoping to learn what the conflict [is] about."
The university's previous academic year ended tumultuously, with New York Police Department raids on a pro-Palestinian encampment and the brief occupation of an academic building, resulting in over 100 arrests. The main graduation ceremony was canceled, and students departed for summer break amid an atmosphere of unease.
Last month, Columbia president Minouche Shafik, who had authorized the police raid on the encampment, resigned from her position.
David Lederer, a 22-year-old junior, held a small counter-protest with a fellow Jewish student outside the university gates. They displayed a large banner reading "Get Support for Terrorism Off Our Campus" and a photo of Hersh Goldberg-Polin, a 23-year-old Israeli-American hostage whose body was recently recovered in Gaza.
Lederer expressed concerns shared by some pro-Israel Jewish students about antisemitism on campus, stating, "To be anti-war is one thing, but to be pro a terrorist organization is another, and that has no place at Columbia."
