Columbia University janitor says he was held hostage by pro-Palestine ... trends now
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A janitor at Columbia University has claimed he was held hostage by pro-Palestine protestors who took over a campus building, with an encampment protester now suspended by college bosses.
Protestors stormed and occupied Hamilton Hall on the main campus of the Manhattan university after smashing their way into the school.
One facilities worker, who was not named, had been exiting the building at the time of the take over when protestors occupying the lobby wouldn't let him leave.
According to The Columbia Spectator, the worker yelled 'they held me hostage' after finally being let out of the building.
Shortly after the unknown worker left, the outlet reported that another three workers were allowed to leave the building before protestors relocked the doors.
Columbia University said on Tuesday afternoon that any students occupying the building face expulsion.
On Tuesday morning, Mahmoud Khalil, a lead student negotiator for the main pro-Palestinian encampment, said that the university had suspended him.
Outdoor furniture and ropes secure the front entrance of Hamilton Hall, which student protesters barricaded
A member of the maintenance crew confronts the demonstrators attempting to barricade themselves inside Hamilton Hall on Tuesday
One facilities worker had been exiting the building at the time of the take over when protestors occupying the lobby wouldn't let him leave. A maintenance member is seen here confronting protestors
Mahmoud Khalil, 29, a graduate student at Columbia University, was notified by the school that he has been suspended
Khalil, a graduate student, claims he had been representing the group but not actually running the encampment.
He told reporters that the groups occupying Hamilton Hall are an 'autonomous subgroup' of the coalition, and that he does not know their demands.
Khalil said he received his notice despite what he said was assurances from the university that he would be able to visit the encampment freely to aid negotiations.
He told the New York Times: 'It just shows they are not using any due process for their suspension notices', adding that it was 'ridiculous'.
Khalil also said that the group who stormed Hamilton Hall are made up of those 'who felt betrayed by the university and their stubbornness to engage in negotiations.
'It’s on the university. I would say the university pushed the students to do this by refusing to concede or to listen to the real demands of the students.'
On Tuesday afternoon, a representative of the student coalition that runs the encampment said they believe there to be 60 people inside Hamilton Hall.
The occupation came nearly 12 hours after the deadline of 2pm on Monday for protestors to leave their protest encampment or face suspension.
Due to the takeover, the school issued a stay away notice for members of staff telling them to avoid the Morningside campus on Tuesday morning.
They then limited access to the area to students residing in residential buildings on campus and essential employees only, and have yet to expel or arrest any of the students responsible.
Since footage of the takeover was shared on social media, users have been comparing the scenes to that of the January 6 riots in 2021 when Donald Trump supporters overran the US Capitol.
University President Nemat Minouche Shafik said in a statement that days of negotiations between student organizers and academic leaders had failed to persuade demonstrators to remove the dozens of tents set up to express opposition to Israel's war in Gaza
Student protesters sit and watch outside Hamilton Hall on Tuesday morning
The occupation came nearly 12 hours after the deadline of 2pm on Monday for protestors to leave their protest encampment or face suspension
A group of students advocating for Palestine at Columbia University stage a demonstration and block the entrance of iconic Hamilton Hall. Students draped a banner that read 'Hind's Hall' in honor of Hind Rajab, 6, who died in Gaza in January
Demonstrators begin building a barricade inside of Hamilton Hall
Insurrectionists loyal to President Donald Trump try to break through a police barrier, Jan. 6, 2021, at the Capitol in Washington
The students stormed the building located along the South Lawn, which has been the scene of the university's anti-Israel encampment for over a week
One user posted: 'Pro-Hamas student thugs @Columbia smashed their way into Hamilton Hall and are reportedly barricading themselves inside. Looks like an insurrection to me.'
Another posted: 'Looks like a scene from Jan 6.'
'We will not leave until Columbia meets every one of our demands,' one activist screamed from a balcony in the building. The group has demanded that the university divest from Israel.
According to the Columbia Spectator, the group who made it inside the building threw their belongings aside before beginning their immediate efforts to barricade themselves inside.
Images from the mass demonstration show sleeping bags, coats, rucksacks and blankets strewn across the ground and piled up in front of doors.
The students stormed the building located along the South Lawn, which has been the scene of the university's anti-Israel encampment for over a week.
They quickly climbed the stairs, dragging down tables and chairs from classrooms which they then used to barricade the doors from the inside.
The building was locked down in less than five minutes, according to the student publication, and protesters allowed no one to enter.
New York representative Ritchie Torres reacted to video footage of protestors smashing their way into the building on social media.
The congressman added: 'So much for 'peaceful protests' at Columbia University.
'Violence is not a bug but a feature of the pro-Hamas encampment movement, which has a deep rot of Anti-Americanism and Anti-Semitism at its core.'
Pro-Palestine protestors are seen here gathering on the front steps of the hall on Tuesday morning
Since footage of the takeover was shared on social media, users have been comparing the scenes to that of the January 6 insurrection
Representative Elise Stefanik said at a press conference: 'The world is watching as the leadership of our so-called elite colleges and universities continue to fail to condemn antisemitism and protect Jewish students on campus.
'Just look at that abject failure of Columbia's president to enforce their own code of conduct that they gave lip service to during the recent Education and Workforce hearing.
'Last night, the pro-Hamas, anti-Semitic mob took over an academic building. The university leadership has lost complete control.
'It is a disagree, and it is untenable and we as house Republicans will hold them to account.'
The White House denounced the takeover of the Columbia University building as 'absolutely the wrong approach' that is 'not an example of peaceful protest.'
John Kirby, a spokesman for President Biden, told reporters: 'A small percentage of students shouldn't be able to disrupt the academic experience and the legitimate study for the rest of the student body.
'Students paying to go to school and wanting an education ought to able to do that without disruption.'
Due to the takeover, the school issued a stay away notice for members of staff telling them to avoid the Morningside campus on Tuesday morning
Due to the limited access, students and faculty lined up to enter the campus on Tuesday
Students with the Gaza solidarity encampment block the entrance of Hamilton Hall
The crackdown at Columbia, at the center of Gaza-related protests roiling university campuses across the U.S. in recent weeks, occurred as police at the University of Texas at Austin arrested dozens of students whom they doused with pepper spray at a pro-Palestinian rally
Columbia sent a letter on Monday morning warning that students who did not vacate the encampment by 2 p.m. ET and sign a form promising to abide by university policies would face suspension and become ineligible to complete the semester in good standing
The apparent 'renaming' of the building was a nod to Hind Rajab. Her body was
