Pro-Mahmoud Khalil demonstrators arrested after clash with NYPD as ‘pro-Hamas’ Columbia graduate faces deportation

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About a dozen protesters were cuffed as they clashed with NYPD officers during a demonstration in support of former Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil Tuesday afternoon, police said.

Cops swarmed in to make arrests after throngs of protesters blocked a downtown Manhattan street, despite repeated warnings from police to clear the roadway.

Pro-Palestine protesters marching in New York City, including celebrities Zendaya, Felipe Bragança, and Walter Jones, calling for the release of activist Mahmoud Khalil.
Throngs of protesters blocked a downtown Manhattan street.James Keivom
Police officers arresting a protester at Columbia.
Police officers arresting a protester at Columbia.

One keffiyeh-clad rabble rouser was tackled to the ground by a pair of officers during his arrest.

“Move cops, get out the way, we know you’re Israeli trained,” some protesters taunted during the tense, caught-on-video scene where police blocked protesters from entering City Hall Park. “Oink, oink, piggy, piggy. We’re gonna make your lives s–tty.”

Cops blared a message on the loop warning protesters if they remained in the roadway, they were going to be arrested and slapped with disorderly conduct charges.

The NYPD said late Tuesday one person was hit with disorderly conduct and obstructing governmental administration charges and another 11 were issued summonses.

Khalil, at the center of a national firestorm, was detained Saturday by federal authorities and faces the threat of deportation for what the White House said Tuesday was peddling “pro-Hamas” views.

Pro-Palestine protesters holding signs during a march in New York City, calling for the release of activist Mahmoud Khalil
Mass protests erupted in New York after the Trump administration made plans to deport a pro-Hamas activist.James Keivom
A protester holding a sign calling for ICE to be abolished.
A protester holding a sign calling for ICE to be abolished.Getty Images

The arrest comes as President Trump has vowed to root out alleged antisemitism by foreign citizens on college campuses, including at Columbia, which has been a hotbed for fiery anti-Israel protests for the past year and a half.

About 350 protesters started out at Washington Square Park earlier Tuesday and marched their way to Federal Plaza Immigration Court, grinding traffic to a halt multiple times as they chanted anti-Israel slogans and called for Khalil’s freedom.

“There is only one solution, intifada revolution,” protesters crowed as the crowds grew to about 500.

Pro-Palestine protesters being arrested at a demonstration in New York City, calling for the release of Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil
At least a dozen people were arrested.James Keivom
A protester getting detained on the ground.
A protester getting detained on the ground.James Keivom

The group was trying to make speeches in front of the federal courthouse in the middle of the street, but were ordered by the NYPD to keep moving. When the protest tried to enter City Hall Park, cops blocked marchers and forced them to turn around before the chaos unfolded.

One tourist visiting from Texas who saw the protest pass by her earlier Tuesday wondered why the protesters were hiding their faces with masks and Palestinian headdress.

“They’re embarrassed to show who they really are,” Andrea Benatar, 44, told The Post.

Protesters are arrested during a pro-Palestine demonstration on Tuesday, March 11, 2025 in New York, N.Y.
The protests come after former Columbia University student Mahmoud Khalil was detained by ICE.James Keivom
NYPD officers clashing with a crowd of protesters.
NYPD officers clashing with a crowd of protesters.James Keivom

“If they’re so proud of freeing Palestine, why not show their faces?

“I’d like them to go and live in Gaza. They clearly have no sympathy for the Jewish people in Israel, including children, who were murdered and kidnapped,” she added.

Police officers also took a man into custody after he got into an argument with a protester.

Protesters march during a pro-Palestine demonstration on Tuesday, March 11, 2025 in New York, N.Y.
Protesters brought signs calling for the release of Khalil from ICE custody.James Keivom
Police officers setting up barriers near Columbia.
Police officers setting up barriers near Columbia.James Keivom

A demonstrator, Anastacia Symone, 30, claimed the man grabbed a young protester by the throat and took a swing at him.

“I’m here to call for the release of Mahmoud Khalil. He was at home with his family when he was criminalized for expressing his freedom of speech,” Symone said.

Protesters argued that Khalil was targeted because he is the “cornerstone in our community,” calling him a “political prisoner.”

Police officers leading a detained man away from the anti-Israel protest.
Police officers leading a detained man away from the anti-Israel protest.James Keivom
Protesters are arrested during a pro-Palestine demonstration on Tuesday, March 11, 2025 in New York,
Anti-Israel protesters attempting to pull a protester away from the NYPD.James Keivom

“The Trump administration and the complicit Columbia University believe if they separate us from this key cornerstone of our community, our movement will begin to crumble,” the protesters screamed.

A federal judge in Louisiana — where Khalil was being held ahead of a scheduled hearing Wednesday morning to determine the next steps in the highly controversial case.

Khalil has a green card and is married to a US citizen who is pregnant.

His legal team wants him returned to New York, arguing the federal government is “engaging in blatant efforts to target and chill,” their client’s free speech and to “discriminate against particular viewpoints.”

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