Federal agents have arrested another immigrant who participated in anti-Israel protests at Columbia University.
The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) on Friday announced that Leqaa Kordia, a Palestinian from the West Bank, was arrested for overstaying her F-1 student visa. The student’s visa expired on January 26, 2022, “for lack of attendance,” according to a DHS press release.
DHS also noted that Indian national Ranjani Srinivasan chose to self-deport after being “involved in activities supporting [Hamas], a terrorist organization.” The State Department revoked her visa.
DHS Secretary Kristi Noem explained:
It is a privilege to be granted a visa to live and study in the United States of America. When you advocate for violence and terrorism that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country. I am glad to see one of the Columbia University terrorist sympathizers use the CBP Home app to self-deport.
🚨BREAKING: ICE arrested ANOTHER pro-Hamas rioter from Columbia University.
— Derrick Evans (@DerrickEvans4WV) March 14, 2025
Leqaa Kordia, is being deported back to Palestine. Last year, she was arrested by NYPD for participating in the Columbia University riots, but was released.
She previously had her visa revoked TWICE for… pic.twitter.com/39rbrIBVcq
This comes amid a Trump administration crackdown on foreign students who participate in anti-Israel and pro-Hamas protests that cropped up after the war in Gaza began on October 7, 2023.
After Hamas murdered over 1,000 Israelis during a surprise attack on that day, thousands of anti-Israel activists have staged demonstrations on college campuses across the country. Many of these individuals have targeted Jewish students and other individuals for harassment and violence. The leadership of these institutions did little to curtail the raucous demonstrations on campus.
These protests typically feature activists marching in the streets while chanting antisemitic slogans and waving Palestinian flags. In several instances, they carried Hamas flags and blatantly defended and endorsed the terrorist group.
DHS arrested another foreign activist named Mahmoud Khalil on Saturday, sparking even more protests and critics claiming his First Amendment rights were being violated.
The Ivy League’s campus in upper Manhattan has seen renewed demonstrations in recent days following the arrest Saturday of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia graduate student and legal permanent resident who was publicly involved in negotiations during last year’s school protests.
Other anti-Israel activists expressed fears that they could be next. An engineering student from the United Kingdom told NBC News that, “This is exactly what I was worried about months ago” and that “you don’t know the scope of the people they’re trying to target because thousands of students were involved in this in some capacity.”
What is interesting about those complaining about the Trump administration’s moves is that these actions would never have been necessary if the leadership of these schools had nipped it in the bud in the first place. By allowing these demonstrations to get out of hand, they allowed these people to draw even more attention to themselves.
If these institutions had taken action against the more aggressive elements in these protests, it is unlikely that the situation would have devolved into what it is today. It is one thing to protest. It is quite another to physically assault and threaten those who disagree with one’s views. This is why these people are getting their comeuppance.
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