Columbia University placates Trump, announces new policies in bid to restore funding

Columbia University, targeted by Donald Trump over student protests and alleged antisemitism from some demonstrators, unveiled a package of policies on Friday in a bid to placate the president.

Trump has targeted US universities that saw significant surges of protests against Israel’s war in Gaza that followed the October 7, 2023 attacks by Hamas.

The administration had demanded that the university deploys external oversight, but the school stopped short of that with its raft of measures, instead vowing to engage with outside academics on the issue.

Columbia’s student movement has been at the forefront of protests that have exposed deep rifts over the war.

Activists called them a show of support for the Palestinian people, while Trump condemned them as anti-Semitic, and said they must end.

The president had cut US$400 million in federal funding for Columbia – including research grants and other contracts – on the grounds that the institution had not adequately protected Jewish students from harassment.