The New York City Police Department (NYPD) has launched an investigation into an attack on a Jewish Columbia University student, treating it as a potential hate crime, JNS reported Thursday.
The incident in question occurred on Monday, when a 22-year-old man made antisemitic remarks and grabbed an Israeli flag from the victim at around 3:30 p.m. local time.
“When the victim attempted to retrieve the flag, the individual punched the victim in the face and fled the location on foot, traveling northbound on Claremont Avenue,” the police stated. “There were no injuries reported.”
The NYPD’s hate-crime task force is leading the investigation and has asked for public assistance in identifying the suspect, according to JNS.
The victim of the attack, Jonathan Lederer, a Columbia junior studying computer science, shared with JNS that he was holding an Israeli flag near campus when he was attacked. Earlier this year, he said someone told him on campus to “go back to Poland.”
Columbia University confirmed to JNS that the assailant was not affiliated with the school.
“We have been alerted that a Columbia student, who was carrying an Israeli flag, was punched yesterday at a demonstration that took place off campus,” the university said. “Initial reports indicate that the assailant was not affiliated with Columbia University. We are working closely with the NYPD to investigate this incident and to do all we can to support their efforts to ensure our neighborhood is safe for our students.”
Lederer, however, criticized the university for not doing enough to protect Jewish students on campus.
“The pro-Palestinian protest on Monday was organized by Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a student group that purposely invites outside organizations like Within Our Lifetime to join them—an extremist Palestinian activist group which often gets violent,” Lederer told JNS.
He argued that Columbia should “refuse to recognize these student groups and refuse to give them access to student resources because they are aligning with organizations which are promoting violence on campus.”
Columbia has come under increased scrutiny over the anti-Israel protests on campus, which have been on the rise since October 7, 2023.
Pro-Palestinian Arab demonstrators at Columbia set up dozens of tents in April, demanding that the university divest from its Israeli assets. The university administration called in police to dismantle the encampments.
On April 30, at the request of university leaders, hundreds of officers with the New York Police Department stormed onto campus, gaining access to the building through a second-story window and making dozens of arrests of the pro-Palestinian Arab demonstrators who had taken over Hamilton Hall.
Before the anti-Israel encampment on campus, the Chabad rabbi of Columbia University and a group of Jewish students were forced to leave the university campus for their own safety during a pro-Hamas demonstration.
In August, three Columbia University deans resigned from the school, after it was discovered that they had exchanged “very troubling” texts that “disturbingly touched on ancient antisemitic tropes”.
Later that month, Columbia University President Dr. Minouche Shafik announced her resignation, following months of criticism for her handling of campus antisemitism.
The antisemitism has continued into the new school year. On the first day of classes, dozens of masked anti-Israel protesters gathered at the entrance to Columbia and at Barnard College.
Days later, pro-Palestinian Arab protesters at Columbia University staged a sit-in at the Institute of Global Politics in the School of International and Public Affairs, where former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was teaching a course.