An anti-Israel agitator punched a visibly Jewish student in the face on Monday afternoon just outside of Columbia's gates, where student group Columbia Palestine Solidarity Coalition held a rally.
The student, Jonathan Lederer, was wearing yarmulke alongside his brother and fellow Columbia student David, who held an Israeli flag. The assailant, who wore what appeared to be a Palestinian flag around his neck, called both students Nazis and ripped the Israeli flag out of David Lederer's hands before taking off running. Jonathan Lederer ran after him, hoping to retrieve the flag. The assailant then punched Lederer, the Columbia student told the Washington Free Beacon.
Another assault outside Columbia! A Jewish student was punched in the face today by a pro-Hamas protestor right outside of campus. Please help identify the perpetrator. pic.twitter.com/0MBoDRdu2t
— David lederer (@Davidlederer6) December 10, 2024
"You're a Nazi. You're a Nazi. You guys have done everything that Hitler has done," the assailant said, according to Lederer, who is calling on law enforcement to take action.
"I don't want the guy to get off scot-free," he told the Free Beacon. "People need to know about this, because people keep saying they are peaceful protests."
The students filed a police report with the New York Police Department's 26th Precinct. The NYPD did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the status of the case.
The Columbia Palestine Solidarity Coalition helped organize the protest in support of Columbia University Apartheid Divest (CUAD), a coalition of Columbia student groups that led the violent encampment that plagued campus in the spring. Meta recently suspended CUAD's Instagram account, prompting the Columbia Palestine Solidarity Coalition to call on its members to "TAKE BACK OUR CAMPUS FROM FASCIST TRUSTEES."
Columbia addressed the assault in a statement, though it did not refer to the victim as Jewish.
"We have been alerted that a Columbia student who was carrying an Israeli flag was punched yesterday at a demonstration that took place off campus. Initial reports indicate that the assailant was not affiliated with Columbia University," the statement read. "We are working closely with the NYPD to investigate this incident and to do all we can to support their efforts to ensure our neighborhood is safe for our students."
The assailant appears to have threatened "Zionists" at recent protests in New York City. One video shows a man who resembles the assailant chanting, "We don't want no Zionists here," during a Saturday demonstration.
They won’t care. Saturday pm he said we don’t want Zionists here. @fbi is studying Islamaphobia pic.twitter.com/MwqfmlDaJ2
— Betar US (@Betar_USA) December 10, 2024
Columbia business professor Shai Davidai addressed the assault on X.
"Today, a Jewish student wearing a yarmulka was punched in the face," he wrote. "I know this student's family. I've met his parents. They're some of the loveliest people I've ever met. And they deserve better."
Columbia has emerged as the epicenter of anti-Semitic student activism in the wake of Hamas's October 7 terror attacks, though student radicals often avoid discipline. A House Education and Workforce Committee report released in October found that "radical faculty members" at Columbia "worked to prevent disciplinary action from being taken against students who violated official policies and even the law."
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