Walkouts, rallies, clashes: Israel-Gaza ‘war of words’ roils Columbia University

Students and staff at the Ivy League school have issued a series of dueling statements amid accusations of harassment and physical violence - and the acrimony shows no signs of slowing

Except for the flickering police vans idling around Columbia University on a recent evening, the campus was almost the picture of an Ivy League idyll, with students striding past classical architecture in their autumnal best, clasping coffee cups.

Yet the conspicuously beefed-up security presence was one sign that all is not well at Columbia. Since the Israel-Hamas war began last month, fierce debates about the conflict and the US's response have riven the university, with students clashing in dueling statements, rallies, and occasional physical confrontations. Hundreds of faculty members have also gotten involved.