Americans and Israelis Sue Pro-Palestinian Activists at Columbia University Over Alleged Hamas Ties
Lawsuit filed in Manhattan accuses student groups and organizers of acting as a propaganda arm for Hamas and providing material support to a designated terrorist organization.
Watan-Nine Americans and Israelis filed a lawsuit on Monday in Manhattan federal court against the organizers and supporters of pro-Palestinian demonstrations at Columbia University, accusing them of acting as a “propaganda arm” for the Palestinian Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas), and as a “domestic public relations firm” in New York City and on campus.
Among the nine Americans and Israelis are individuals who were affected by the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel, including relatives of those killed or taken hostage, as well as two individuals affiliated with Columbia University who reported being mistreated there.
They claim that the defendants have coordinated their efforts with Hamas since 2023 — which is designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. State Department — to support its attacks, and that some of the defendants had prior knowledge of the attack, “based on information and belief.”
Lawsuit Targets Columbia Protest Leaders Over Alleged Ties to Hamas
One of the defendants is Mahmoud Khalil, who helped lead the protests at Columbia University and served as a negotiator between university administrators and the coalition of student groups and the group “Columbia University Apartheid Divest,” which is also named in the lawsuit.
Other defendants include the group “Within Our Lifetime – United for Palestine,” Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine, Columbia/Barnard Jewish Voice for Peace, and some of their leaders.
The lawsuit states: “It is illegal for Hamas to directly contract a public relations firm in the United States, or to hire agents to enforce its will in American cities… Yet these are precisely the services that the defendant groups are deliberately providing to Hamas.”
The defendants, or the attorneys who represented them in previous legal proceedings related to Columbia University, have not yet responded to requests for comment.
Khalil Denies Hamas Ties as Deportation Effort and Lawsuit Intensify
Khalil’s lawyers have previously stated that he has no connection to Hamas. The Trump administration is seeking to deport Khalil, a permanent resident, who is currently detained in Louisiana.
Marc Goldfeder, an attorney with the National Jewish Advocacy Center who represents the plaintiffs, said in an email that the coordination activities of the defendants with Hamas are well known because “they have said so repeatedly.”
He added: “There is nothing wrong with supporting Palestinians, and pro-Hamas speech remains protected in most contexts. The issue here is material support and coordination with a foreign organization designated as terrorist.”
The civil lawsuit alleges violations of the U.S. Anti-Terrorism Act and the Alien Tort Statute, and seeks unspecified damages and enhanced punitive compensation.
