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Manhattan Erupts as Hundreds Rally for Detained Columbia Protester at Heart of Anti-Israel Firestorm
By: Fern Sidman
A wave of tension gripped Midtown Manhattan on Saturday as more than 700 anti-Israel demonstrators marched from Times Square to Columbus Circle in a charged rally supporting Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil — a controversial figure at the center of ongoing campus unrest and, increasingly, a national flashpoint in the broader debate over anti-Semitism and free expression in the United States.
Mahmoud Khalil stood in front of a crowd of thousands of people calling for them to celebrate Hamas terrorists who raped and slaughtered innocent civilians…
The same Hamas terrorists who call for “Death to America”…
That’s why he’s being deported.
— The Persian Jewess (@persianjewess) March 10, 2025
According to a report that appeared on Saturday in The New York Post, the crowd included a mix of young demonstrators — many masked — some of whom waved Hamas flags and hurled verbal abuse at both police and pro-Israel counter-protesters. The scene, punctuated by screaming matches and taunts, illustrated just how volatile these gatherings have become.
In one particularly jarring exchange reported by The New York Post, a masked teen screamed “Get the f–k out of Palestine” at a group of Israel supporters near Columbus Circle. One Israel supporter shot back: “Does this look like America to anybody? What the f–k is this?” Another countered simply, “It’s garbage,” emphasizing the bitterness and acrimony between the opposing factions.
Beyond the headline clashes, the demonstration disrupted daily life for many New Yorkers who happened to find themselves in the wrong place at the wrong time. The New York Post report highlighted the case of 57-year-old Daniel Hollman, who was merely heading to a local supermarket when he was aggressively confronted by demonstrators. Hollman told The Post that protesters insulted him with slurs and assumptions.
“They called me gay; I’m not gay!” Hollman said. “I have a wife. I think it’s because I’m wearing a suit. They called me a Zionist. I’m not a Zionist. I’m not Jewish, but I support Israel and its right to defend itself.” His experience illustrates the troubling escalation in hostility, where even a perceived affiliation with Israel or traditional appearance can provoke harassment from demonstrators.
At the heart of the rally was the figure of Mahmoud Khalil, who The New York Post described as a key agitator in the anti-Israel protest movement at Columbia University. Khalil, a graduate student who gained notoriety after organizing numerous demonstrations on campus following the October 7th Hamas massacre in Israel, was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) on March 8.\
Resurfaced video shows Columbia protest leader Mahmoud Khalil leading a pro-Hamas protest.
Khalil led a group of masked students chanting the genocidal slogan “From the River to the Sea.”
Khalil is facing deportation back to Syria.
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) March 16, 2025
Khalil was arrested at a Columbia-owned residential building and subsequently transferred to a detention facility in Louisiana, where he is now facing deportation proceedings. According to The New York Post report, his arrest has drawn national attention and transformed him into a symbolic figure among protesters, who view him as a martyr of the growing federal crackdown on campus activism that is blatantly anti-Semitic in nature.
Khalil has effectively become the poster boy for President Trump’s renewed efforts to hold universities accountable for allowing “radical anti-Semitic behavior” to fester on campuses under the guise of free speech, as was noted in The New York Post report. Trump allies have pointed to Khalil as a case study in how foreign students allegedly abuse the protections of American higher education institutions to propagate divisive and extremist ideologies.
The protest comes at a time of heightened political and social polarization surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, especially in the aftermath of the October 7, 2023, Hamas terror attack that left over 1,200 Israelis dead and sparked the war in Gaza. While many demonstrators frame their actions as solidarity with Palestinians, the public waving of Hamas flags — a U.S.-designated terrorist organization — raises uncomfortable questions about the blurred lines between protest and provocation.
The report in The New York Post revealed a deeply divided civic landscape where free speech, national security, and public order are increasingly colliding in explosive ways. The presence of minors cloaked in anonymity while waving extremist symbols, the harassment of passersby, and the aggressive tone of slogans all point to a movement whose tactics and rhetoric may be alienating even those who might otherwise be sympathetic to peaceful advocacy.
While much of the demonstrators’ outrage focused on Khalil’s detention and broader American policy toward Israel, there was also an undercurrent of resentment toward law enforcement and institutional authority, which many protesters view as complicit in silencing dissent. However, the scenes described by The New York Post — hostile language, threats, and harassment of civilians — suggest that the movement’s tone may be veering into something darker than civil disobedience.
Free Mahmoud Khalil and Free Palestine Protest at Columbia Universityhttps://t.co/MUFjDcTnzB@QNSNewsJunkie pic.twitter.com/y4FXlsWlvS
— LLN NYC (@loudlabsnyc) March 16, 2025
As one Israel supporter put it during the protest, “Does this look like America?” The question, though rhetorical, echoes far beyond Columbus Circle. As the lines between protest and intimidation grow murkier, it remains to be seen how long authorities — and the broader public — will continue to tolerate such scenes on city streets.
And while demonstrators rally around Mahmoud Khalil as a symbol of resistance, many Americans may be quietly asking another question: What kind of resistance embraces symbols of terror, and what exactly are they resisting — justice, or simply accountability?
