Demonstrators have filled the lobby of Trump Tower in New York City after the ICE arrest of a Columbia University activist.
Those with the Jewish Voice for Peace wore red shirts read ‘Jews say stop arming Israel‘ and carried banners reading ‘Opposing fascism is a Jewish tradition’.
Others said ‘fight Nazis not students’ while also chanting out ‘bring Mahmoud home now’.
Police, who were staged inside and outside the Fifth Avenue building ahead of the demonstration, began arresting protesters after warning them to leave.
Trump Tower serves as headquarters for the Trump Organization and is where the president stays when he is in New York.
A line of protestors could be seen being led into awaiting NYPD police trucks following the sit in.
Khalil, 29, a Palestinian who was born and raised in Syria, helped to lead protests against Israel at Columbia University last year.
Demonstrators from the group, Jewish Voice for Peace, protest inside Trump Tower
New York Police officers arrest a demonstrator from the group Jewish Voice for Peace following the protest
New York Police officers arrest a demonstrator from the group on Thursday
Demonstrators are detained during a rally against the ICE detention of Mahmoud Khalil
He also acted as a negotiator between students and university officials.
The protests were allowed to run rampant for two weeks. They were marked by violent assaults and instances of Jewish students being afraid to go to class.
He was taken into custody at his university-owned apartment on Saturday night by ICE agents.
The Department of Homeland Security, confirming Khalil’s arrest on Sunday, claimed he had ‘led activities aligned to Hamas’ and that the DHS action was taken ‘in coordination with the Department of State.’
Secretary of State Marco Rubio said in a post on Sunday that his department would be ‘revoking the visas and/or green cards of Hamas supporters in America so they can be deported.’
This is a breaking news story.
