Campus Watch March 19, 2025

DOJ: Brown University Prof Deported After Attending Hezbollah Leader’s Funeral

The Department of Justice claimed that a recently deported assistant professor at Brown University’s medical school had attended Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah’s funeral and had photos and videos on her phone that were sympathetic toward top Hezbollah leaders.

According to Politico, which obtained a court filing, Rasha Alawieh, 34, admitted to attending Nasrallah’s funeral and that she admired him from a religious standpoint, not a political one. Alawieh also purportedly had a picture of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on her phone; she told immigration officers that too was because of his religious teachings, not politics. A federal judge demanded that she stay until a hearing on March 17, but she was already deported to Lebanon; the government claimed that they were not aware of the order, reported CBS News. The hearing was postponed after Alawieh’s attorneys withdrew from the case and she now has a new legal team.

The Department of Homeland Security announced in a March 17 post on X, “A visa is a privilege not a right—glorifying and supporting terrorists who kill Americans is grounds for visa issuance to be denied. This is commonsense security.”

“Free Palestine” Graffiti on UMich Provost’s Home

University of Michigan Provost Laurie McCauley’s house was vandalized with graffiti stating “Free Palestine” over the weekend.

The Detroit Free Press reported that “Divest” and “No Honor in Genocide” were also spray-painted on McCauley’s house and that an object was thrown into a window. No one was injured. Police believe the vandalism likely occurred sometime between 9 pm March 15 and 8 am March 16. Police are investigating the incident and the university is assisting in the investigation.

Columbia Expels, Suspends Students Involved in Occupation of Hamilton Hall

Columbia University announced on March 13 that myriad students have been suspended and expelled from campus after occupying Hamilton Hall in April 2024.

The sanctions, according to the university’s announcement, includes “multi-year suspensions, temporary degree revocations, and expulsions.” The university did not specify how many students were sanctioned; The College Fix noted that some reports state that 22 students were sanctioned. “Columbia is committed to enforcing the University’s Rules and Policies and improving our disciplinary processes,” the announcement concluded.

As previously reported in Campus Watch, anti-Israel protesters broke windows, barricaded the doors with tables and unfurled signs saying “intifada” and “Gaza Calls, Columbia Falls” in response to the university suspending students in the encampment who refused to obey dispersal orders. A facilities worker claimed the protesters held him hostage inside the building.

Columbia Hillel Executive Director Brian Cohen said in a statement that the university’s sanctions against the students are “an important first step in righting the wrongs of the past year and a half.”

Columbia Student’s Visa Revoked

The Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced on March 14 that it has revoked the visa for Columbia University student Ranjani Srinivasan on the ground that she supports Hamas.

According to DHS, Srinivasan is a citizen of India and had been in the United States on an F-1 student visa as a doctoral student at Columbia, studying Urban Planning. “Srinivasan was involved in activities supporting Hamas, a terrorist organization,” DHS said. “The Department of Homeland Security has obtained video footage of her using the CBP [Customs and Border Patrol] Home App to self-deport on March 11.” According to the Washington Free Beacon, the app is “the Trump administration’s newly transformed version of the Biden-era ‘CBP One’ app that aims to streamline the self-deportation of illegal immigrants.”

“It is a privilege to be granted a visa to live and study in the United States of America. When you advocate for violence and terrorism that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country,” DHS Secretary Kristi Noem said in a statement. “I am glad to see one of the Columbia University terrorist sympathizers use the CBP Home app to self-deport.”

Though DHS did not specify Srinivasan’s activities that allegedly supported Hamas, the Free Beacon noted that Srinivasan signed a Dec. 2023 letter called “Palestinian Liberation Is Our Collective Liberation” that stated in part: “Our heartbreak and sense of professional responsibility compel us to speak plainly about genocide as we see it unfolding. We grieve the loss of lives in Palestine and Israel, which impacts all caught in the present cycle of settler colonial violence perpetrated by the governments of Israel, the United States, and many other powers at a distance. Our solidarity with the anticolonial liberation movement in Palestine is consistent with our solidarity with all those who experience racism, particularly structural racism.”