Wife of terrorist participated in protests at Columbia University: NYPD
MORNINGSIDE HEIGHTS, Manhattan (PIX11) – The wife of a well-known terrorist allegedly participated in the protests at Columbia University, NYPD Chief of Patrol John Chell claimed.
Officials held a news conference on Wednesday, blaming "outside agitators" for escalating pro-Palestinian protests at college campuses around New York City. Chell said that the woman trained the students in new demonstration tactics and accused her of "radicalizing them."
"People who weren't from the school infiltrated the campus, causing problems for our students, radicalizing them and teaching them how to do things they normally wouldn't do," he said.
The woman, identified by the Associated Press as Nahla Al-Arian, told the news organization that she was not at the Columbia protest when the arrests took place but had visited the campus on April 25. The NYPD and Adams did not name the woman they accused of "radicalizing" the students.
Police officers cleared out the lobby of Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus on Tuesday night after about a dozen students set up camp and refused to leave, according to the NYPD. The school said that the students were trespassing at Lowenstein Hall and called the NYPD for assistance.
Officers also responded to City College on Wednesday despite the more than 200 arrests at the school on Tuesday night. Demonstrators ransacked an administrative building, according to CUNY.
At least 280 people were arrested during the protests on Tuesday night. About 170 of those arrests were summonses, while the remaining 110 were either desk appearance tickets or cases this making their way through the system, according to the NYPD.
Nahla Al-Arian is the wife of Sami Al-Arian, a former professor and Palestinian activist who was charged with supporting the Palestinian Islamic Jihad group back in the 1980s and 1990s. He was later acquitted of those charges.
"I sat and I felt happy to see those students fighting for justice for the oppressed people in Palestine," she told AP. "Then I was tired, so I left."
Students have called on their schools to divest from companies that support Israel. The NYPD and Columbia University have faced criticism for their response to student protests, which students and faculty have called brutal.
This story comprises reporting from The Associated Press.