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Jewish students barricade in Cooper Union library as protesters chant ‘Free Palestine,’ on day of protest across NYC campuses

(New York Jewish Week) — Jewish students at a New York City college were locked in their school’s library for 20 minutes as pro-Palestinian demonstrators pounded on the doors and shouted slogans. 

The incident on Wednesday night at Cooper Union, a private college in downtown Manhattan, occurred after pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel students held dueling rallies. It came on a day when, at a New York University protest nearby, a protester waved a sign showing a Star of David in a trash can. Meanwhile, further uptown at Columbia, supporters of Israel rallied and decried that school’s administration.

Footage from the incident at Cooper Union showed a group of Jewish students in the library, while protesters outside pounded on the building’s doors and windows, chanting “Free Palestine,” waving signs advocating a boycott of Israel and calling for a ceasefire in Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza. Building staff had made the decision to lock the doors.

The NYPD has been in touch with the school and present on its campus, and told the New York Jewish Week that there was no property damage, nor criminal reports or injuries during the incident. But Jewish students who spoke to CBS said they felt threatened. 

“It was tense, people were nervous,” said one student who appeared in footage of the incident and spoke to CBS but did not give her name. “They were specifically acting very aggressive in those spaces where outwardly Jewish students were sitting.”

CBS reported that the pro-Palestinian protesters released a statement saying, “Our protest was not targeting any individual student or faculty but the institution itself.” The statement also disavowed antisemitism. 

In a statement to the New York Jewish Week, Cooper Union said, “The library was closed for approximately 20 minutes late this afternoon while student protestors moved through our building. Some students who were previously in the library remained there during this time.”

Jewish leaders as well as city and state officials have condemned the incident. The regional director for the Anti-Defamation League, Scott Richman, said he had spoken with Cooper Union students and was “shocked” by their account of the incident. ADL CEO Jonathan Greenblatt said, “This intimidation of students is appalling,” and demanded that the college keep Jewish students safe. The school has not issued any public statements. 

The American Jewish Committee, New York Governor Kathy Hochul and Manhattan Borough President Mark Levine also expressed alarm over the incident. Levine said the NYPD had been involved and were reviewing security footage of the incident for more information.

Student groups in New York and nationwide, meanwhile, staged a walkout in support of the Palestinians on Wednesday.

A pro-Palestinian rally in Washington Square Park, near NYU’s campus, featured a demonstrator with an antisemitic sign reading, “Please keep the world clean,” and a figure placing a Star of David in a trash bin. Video from the event showed dozens of demonstrators chanting “globalize the intifada.”

Police and Jewish security groups have reported a spike in antisemitic incidents since the start of the war in the New York region and around the country. Recent incidents in New York, where Jews are targeted by hate crimes far more than any other group, have ranged from physical assaults to racist graffiti and harassment.

Columbia and other Ivy League colleges have been rocked by controversy since the start of the war between Israel and Hamas, as pro-Palestinian student organizations came out in support of the terror group’s Oct. 7 attack. After Israel began its counteroffensive against Hamas, protests against the Jewish state intensified, including in recent days.

At Columbia on Wednesday, hundreds students and supporters lined Broadway outside the school’s gates, waving Israeli flags and holding images of Hamas hostages in a display of support for Jewish students and criticism of the administration due to its perceived inaction in the face of threats to Jews.

The demonstrators at the rally chanted “end Jew hatred” and “free Gaza from Hamas,” as a passing truck with an electronic billboard displayed images of the captives held in Gaza and other students streamed by.

Students chanted “shame on you,” in a message directed at the university’s leadership, which some demonstrators said had allowed a hostile atmosphere for Jews as student groups applauded the Hamas attack and barred “Zionists” from an on campus event.

“The university is not doing anything, not condemning any of the terror acts that happened,” said an Israeli Columbia student, Noa Gorecki.

“It’s just disappointing that this kind of university chooses to behave like that and we’re doing everything we can,” she said, adding that Jewish students felt “unsafe, scared, angry.”

The rally was organized by the local advocacy group End Jew Hatred to “empower” Jewish students due to inaction from administrators, said Gerard Filitti, an activist with the organization who is not a student.

“It’s very difficult for Jewish students to feel safe, let alone to be heard,” Filitti said. “The administration can’t be equivocal.”

Filitti, a senior counsel with the nonprofit Lawfare project, a group that takes legal action on behalf of pro-Israel students, said he expected litigation against universities due to their conduct since the Oct. 7 attack on Israel by Hamas, which killed and wounded thousands. Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel rallies have spread across campuses in the wake of the attack, and a range of student groups and faculty members have praised the attack.

“College campuses are not keeping Jewish students or faculty safe and they’re obligated to do so,” he said. “They’re allowing an environment that’s hostile to the point that they can’t enjoy the same benefits as any other student, and that’s not legal.”

Some parents came to the rally to support their Jewish children at Columbia, after the students reported feeling unsafe. Other participants were not affiliated with the university, but came to show support.

“There’s little we can do here while our family and our friends are fighting in Israel so we want to try to do our part,” said Will Lerer, a Yeshiva University student.

On Oct. 9, before Israel’s military response had caused significant damage, Columbia’s Students for Justice in Palestine said it “stands in full solidarity with Palestinian resistance” and called the Hamas attack “an unprecedented historic moment for the Palestinians.”

A 19-year-old attacked an Israeli student with a stick outside Columbia’s main library in the wake of the attack, resulting in hate crimes charges

Columbia student branches of Students for Justice in Palestine and the anti-Zionist Jewish Voice for Peace announced a walkout on Wednesday as part of a national student protest against “the siege and genocide in Gaza.” The student groups demanded the university divest from Israel and for students to “stand against the university’s support for a genocidal and settler-colonial regime.”

Columbia postponed an annual fundraising drive that was scheduled for Wednesday, saying it was “not the appropriate time” for the event. Several prominent donors have pulled funds from other Ivy League schools, including Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania, in recent weeks due to alleged antisemitism and the university administrations’ response to the war.

On Oct. 12, three Columbia administrators released a statement on the conflict, condemning antisemitism and Islamophobia and saying, “We reject and will not tolerate hate speech, violence, or the threat or any acts of violence in our community.”

Last week, university president Minouche Shafik called for civility on campus and condemned online harassment, saying some students had been victimized by doxing. The statements did not condemn Hamas.

Jews and supporters of Israel on campus have called for Shafik to do more. An Israeli professor, Shai Davidai, made a viral speech last week directed at parents, saying, “I want you to know we cannot protect your children from pro-terror student organizations.”

“None of the presidents of universities all around the country are willing to take a stand. This is what cowards do and I’ll name it now, President Minouche Shafik of Columbia University, you are a coward,” he said.


The post Jewish students barricade in Cooper Union library as protesters chant ‘Free Palestine,’ on day of protest across NYC campuses appeared first on Jewish Telegraphic Agency.

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Colorado Attack Suspect Charged with Assault, Use of Explosives

FILE PHOTO: Boulder attack suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman poses for a jail booking photograph after his arrest in Boulder, Colorado, U.S. June 2, 2025. Photo: Boulder Police Department/Handout via REUTERS

A suspect in an attack on a pro-Israeli rally in Colorado that injured eight people was being held on Monday on an array of charges, including assault and the use of explosives, in lieu of a $10-million bail, according to Boulder County records.

The posted list of felony charges against suspect Mohamed Sabry Soliman, 45, in the attack on Sunday also includes charges of murder in the first degree, although police in the city of Boulder have said on social media that no victims died in the attack. Authorities could not be reached immediately to clarify.

Witnesses reported the suspect used a makeshift flamethrower and threw an incendiary device into the crowd. He was heard to yell “Free Palestine” during the attack, according to the FBI, in what the agency called a “targeted terror attack.”

Four women and four men between 52 and 88 years of age were transported to hospitals after the attack, Boulder Police said.

The attack took place on the Pearl Street Mall, a popular pedestrian shopping district near the University of Colorado, during an event organized by Run for Their Lives, an organization devoted to drawing attention to the hostages seized in the aftermath of Hamas’ 2023 attack on Israel.

Rabbi Yisroel Wilhelm, the Chabad director at the University of Colorado, Boulder, told CBS Colorado that the 88-year-old victim was a Holocaust refugee who fled Europe.

A Department of Homeland Security spokesperson said Soliman had entered the country in August 2022 on a tourist visa that expired in February 2023. He filed for asylum in September 2022. “The suspect, Mohamed Soliman, is illegally in our country,” the spokesperson said.

The FBI raided and searched Soliman’s home in El Paso County, Colorado, the agency said on social media. “As this is an ongoing investigation, no additional information is available at this time.”

The attack in Boulder was the latest act of violence aimed at Jewish Americans linked to outrage over Israel’s escalating military offensive in Gaza. It followed the fatal shooting of two Israel Embassy aides that took place outside Washington’s Capital Jewish Museum last month.

Ron Halber, CEO of the Jewish Community Relations Council of Greater Washington, said after the shooting there was a question of how far security perimeters outside Jewish institutions should extend.

Boulder Police said they would hold a press conference later on Monday to discuss details of the Colorado attack.

The Denver office of the FBI, which is handling the case, did not immediately respond to emails or phone calls seeking clarification on the homicide charges or other details in the case.

Officials from the Boulder County Jail, Boulder Police and Boulder County Sheriff’s Office did not immediately respond to inquiries.

The post Colorado Attack Suspect Charged with Assault, Use of Explosives first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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Iran Poised to Dismiss US Nuclear Proposal, Iranian Diplomat Says

Iran’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi attends a press conference following a meeting with Russia’s Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow, Russia, April 18, 2025. Photo: Tatyana Makeyeva/Pool via REUTERS

Iran is poised to reject a US proposal to end a decades-old nuclear dispute, an Iranian diplomat said on Monday, dismissing it as a “non-starter” that fails to address Tehran’s interests or soften Washington’s stance on uranium enrichment.

“Iran is drafting a negative response to the US proposal, which could be interpreted as a rejection of the US offer,” the senior diplomat, who is close to Iran’s negotiating team, told Reuters.

The US proposal for a new nuclear deal was presented to Iran on Saturday by Omani Foreign Minister Sayyid Badr Albusaidi, who was on a short visit to Tehran and has been mediating talks between Tehran and Washington.

After five rounds of discussions between Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi and President Donald Trump’s Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, several obstacles remain.

Among them are Iran’s rejection of a US demand that it commit to scrapping uranium enrichment and its refusal to ship abroad its entire existing stockpile of highly enriched uranium – possible raw material for nuclear bombs.

Tehran says it wants to master nuclear technology for peaceful purposes and has long denied accusations by Western powers that it is seeking to develop nuclear weapons.

“In this proposal, the US stance on enrichment on Iranian soil remains unchanged, and there is no clear explanation regarding the lifting of sanctions,” said the diplomat, who declined to be identified due to the sensitivity of the matter.

Araqchi said Tehran would formally respond to the proposal soon.

Tehran demands the immediate removal of all US-imposed curbs that impair its oil-based economy. But the US says nuclear-related sanctions should be removed in phases.

Dozens of institutions vital to Iran’s economy, including its central bank and national oil company, have been blacklisted since 2018 for, according to Washington, “supporting terrorism or weapons proliferation.”

Trump’s revival of “maximum pressure” against Tehran since his return to the White House in January has included tightening sanctions and threatening to bomb Iran if the negotiations yield no deal.

During his first term in 2018, Trump ditched Tehran’s 2015 nuclear pact with six powers and reimposed sanctions that have crippled Iran’s economy. Iran responded by escalating enrichment far beyond the pact’s limits.

Under the deal, Iran had until 2018 curbed its sensitive nuclear work in return for relief from US, EU and U.N. economic sanctions.

The diplomat said the assessment of “Iran’s nuclear negotiations committee,” under the supervision of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was that the US proposal was “completely one-sided” and could not serve Tehran’s interests.

Therefore, the diplomat said, Tehran considers this proposal a “non-starter” and believes it unilaterally attempts to impose a “bad deal” on Iran through excessive demands.

NUCLEAR STANDOFF RAISES MIDDLE EAST TENSIONS

The stakes are high for both sides. Trump wants to curtail Tehran’s potential to produce a nuclear weapon that could trigger a regional nuclear arms race and perhaps threaten Israel. Iran’s clerical establishment, for its part, wants to be rid of the devastating sanctions.

Iran says it is ready to accept some limits on enrichment, but needs watertight guarantees that Washington would not renege on a future nuclear accord.

Two Iranian officials told Reuters last week that Iran could pause uranium enrichment if the US released frozen Iranian funds and recognized Tehran’s right to refine uranium for civilian use under a “political deal” that could lead to a broader nuclear accord.

Iran’s arch-foe Israel sees Iran’s nuclear program as an existential threat and says it would never allow Tehran to obtain nuclear weapons.

Araqchi, in a joint news conference with his Egyptian counterpart in Cairo, said: “I do not think Israel will commit such a mistake as to attack Iran.”

Tehran’s regional influence has meanwhile been diminished by military setbacks suffered by its forces and those of its allies in the Shi’ite-dominated “Axis of Resistance,” which include Hamas, Hezbollah, the Houthis in Yemen, and Iraqi militias.

In April, Saudi Arabia’s defence minister delivered a blunt message to Iranian officials to take Trump’s offer of a new deal seriously as a way to avoid the risk of war with Israel.

The post Iran Poised to Dismiss US Nuclear Proposal, Iranian Diplomat Says first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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The Islamist Crescent: A New Syrian Danger

Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa speaks during a joint press conference with French President Emmanuel Macron after a meeting at the Elysee Palace in Paris, France, May 7, 2025. Photo: REUTERS/Stephanie Lecocq/Pool

The dramatic fall of the Assad regime in Syria has undeniably reshaped the Middle East, yet the emerging power dynamics, particularly the alignment between Saudi Arabia and Turkey, warrant profound scrutiny from those committed to American and Israeli security. While superficially presented as a united front against Iranian influence, this new Sunni axis carries a dangerous undercurrent of Islamism and regional ambition that could ultimately undermine, rather than serve, the long-term interests of Washington and Jerusalem.

For too long, Syria under Bashar al-Assad served as a critical conduit for Iran’s destabilizing agenda, facilitating arms transfers to Hezbollah and projecting Tehran’s power across the Levant. The removal of this linchpin is, on the surface, a strategic victory. However, the nature of the new Syrian government, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa — a figure Israeli officials continue to view with deep suspicion due to his past as a former Al-Qaeda-linked commander — raises immediate red flags. This is not merely a change of guard; it is a shift that introduces a new set of complex challenges, particularly given Turkey’s historical support for the Muslim Brotherhood, an organization deemed a terror group by Saudi Arabia and many other regional states.

Israel’s strategic calculus in Syria has always been clear: to degrade Iran’s military presence, prevent Hezbollah from acquiring advanced weaponry, and maintain operational freedom in Syrian airspace. Crucially, Israel has historically thought it best to have a decentralized, weak, and fragmented Syria, with reports that it has actively worked against the resurgence of a robust central authority. This preference stems from a pragmatic understanding that a strong, unified Syria, especially one under the tutelage of an ambitious regional power like Turkey, could pose much more of a threat than the Assad regime ever did. Indeed, Israeli defense officials privately express concern at Turkey’s assertive moves, accusing Ankara of attempting to transform post-war Syria into a Turkish protectorate under Islamist tutelage. This concern is not unfounded; Turkey’s ambitious, arguably expansionist, objectives — and its perceived undue dominance in Arab lands — are viewed by Israel as warily as Iran’s previous influence.

The notion that an “Ottoman Crescent” is now replacing the “Shiite Crescent” should not be celebrated as a net positive. While it may diminish Iranian power, it introduces a new form of regional hegemony, one driven by an ideology that has historically been antithetical to Western values and stability. The European Union’s recent imposition of sanctions on Turkish-backed Syrian army commanders for human rights abuses, including arbitrary killings and torture, further underscores the problematic nature of some elements within this new Syrian landscape. The fact that al-Sharaa has allowed such individuals to operate with impunity and even promoted them to high-ranking positions should give Washington pause.

From an American perspective, while the Trump administration has pragmatically engaged with the new Syrian government, lifting sanctions and urging normalization with Israel, this engagement must be tempered with extreme caution. The core American interests in the Middle East — counterterrorism, containment of Iran, and regional stability — are not served by empowering Islamist-leaning factions or by enabling a regional power, like Turkey, whose actions have sometimes undermined the broader fight against ISIS. Washington must demand that Damascus demonstrate a genuine commitment to taking over the counter-ISIS mission and managing detention facilities, and unequivocally insist that Turkey cease actions that risk an ISIS resurgence.

The argument that Saudi Arabia and Turkey, despite their own complex internal dynamics, are simply pragmatic actors countering Iran overlooks the ideological underpinnings that concern many conservatives. Turkey’s ruling party, rooted in political Islam, and its historical ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, present a fundamental challenge to the vision of a stable, secular, and pro-Western Middle East. While Saudi Arabia has designated the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization, its alignment with Turkey in Syria, and its own internal human rights record, means that this “new front” is far from a clean solution.

The Saudi-Turkey alignment in Syria is a double-edged sword. While it may indeed serve to counter Iran’s immediate regional ambitions, it simultaneously risks empowering actors whose long-term objectives and ideological leanings are deeply problematic for American, Israeli, and Western interests. Washington and Jerusalem must approach this new dynamic with extreme vigilance, prioritizing the containment of all forms of radicalism — whether Shiite or Sunni — and ensuring that any strategic gains against Iran do not inadvertently pave the way for a new, equally dangerous, Islamist crescent to rise in the heart of the Levant.

Amine Ayoub, a fellow at the Middle East Forum, is a policy analyst and writer based in Morocco. Follow him on X: @amineayoubx 

The post The Islamist Crescent: A New Syrian Danger first appeared on Algemeiner.com.

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