Tracie Strahan reports.
Federal Department of Homeland Security agents searched the dorm rooms of two Columbia University students after obtaining judicial warrants to do so Thursday night, the college's interim president said in a statement, adding she was "heartbroken" to inform the community of the intrusion.
No one was arrested or detained. No items were removed, and no further action was taken, Columbia Interim President Katrina Armstrong said. She noted that it was consistent with university protocol to comply with the warrant executions. She said university public safety officers were present at all times.
"I understand the immense stress our community is under. Despite the unprecedented challenges, Columbia University will remain a place where the pursuit of knowledge is cherished and fiercely protected, where the rule of law and due process is respected and never taken for granted, and where all members of our community are valued and able to thrive," Armstrong said. "These are the principles we uphold and that guide us every day."
Watch NBC 4 free wherever you are
The developments come amid mounting protests to free pro-Palestinian activist Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University graduate student arrested by ICE agents for his role in last year's protests at the campus.
Get Tri-state area news delivered to your inbox with NBC New York's News Headlines newsletter.
A judge ruled Khalil will remain detained in Louisiana until at least next week but can speak to lawyers while they fight the Trump administration’s plans to deport him.
Khalil, whose wife is pregnant with their first child, finished his requirements for a Columbia master’s degree in December. Born in Syria, he is a grandson of Palestinians who were forced to leave their homeland, his lawyers said in a legal filing.
News
President Trump heralded Khalil’s arrest as the first “of many to come,” vowing on social media to deport students he said engage in “pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activity.”
Khalil, who acted as a spokesperson for Columbia protesters, hasn't been charged with a crime.
The White House says the administration moved to deport him under a section of the Immigration and Nationality Act that gives the secretary of state the power to deport a non-citizen on foreign policy grounds.
Civil rights groups and Khalil’s attorneys say the government is unconstitutionally using its immigration control powers to stop him from speaking out.
