The wife of a former college professor who was convicted of terrorism-related charges was part of the Columbia University encampment before it was raided by New York Police Department officers on Tuesday.
Nahla Al-Arian was present among anti-Israel protesters at Columbia last week on the Morningside Heights campus. Her husband, Sami Al-Arian, was convicted in 2005 for fundraising and supporting the terrorist group Palestinian Islamic Jihad, according to the New York Post.
While there is no evidence that Nahla committing any official crimes, concerns have been raised about her influence on the student protesters.
“We have no evidence of any criminal wrongdoing on her part but that’s something I wouldn’t want influencing my child if I were a parent of somebody at Columbia,” said Rebecca Weiner, Deputy Commissioner, of Intelligence & Counterterrorism at the NYPD.
“These students don’t come in the door knowing how to barricade themselves behind barriers that they’ve created, right? These are all skills that are taught and learned and that presents a problem. And so you know, this is not about policing ideas in any way, shape, or form. It is about recognizing when there is an actual public safety concern,” Weiner explained.
The encampment at Columbia University has raised concerns about public safety, with officials highlighting the presence of “outside agitators” contributing to chaos on college campuses. New York Mayor Eric Adams and other officials have blamed these individuals, as many of the protesters who have been arrested were revealed to not be students.
Fox News reporter Peter Doocy questioned White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre about the involvement of “outside agitators” in the protests. He inquired about whether or not federal agencies intend to investigate the funding behind these protests, citing reports of matching tents and professional agitators.
“Some of these encampments, they had matching tents we’re being told, that there are professional outside agitators involved. We don’t know if they’re being paid to sow chaos by domestic folks or foreign entities. Does [the administration want] to find out who is funding some of these protests?” Doocy asked.
Jean-Pierre avoided directly addressing the question, stating, “I cannot speak to the organizations that are being reported that are on the ground. That is not something for me to speak to.” She then went on to say that these questions should instead be directed at local officials.
