NEW YORK — Talks have stalled between Columbia University students and officials to clear the campus pro-Gaza encampment on campus, prompting the administration to threaten disciplinary action for any students who did not leave by Monday afternoon.

Columbia President Minouche Shafik announced the breakdown of negotiations Monday morning. Students at the encampment were informed in writing that failure to vacate the quad could result in action that could include suspension or expulsion from Columbia — but as of the university’s 2 p.m. deadline there was no sign anyone was leaving.

“Regretfully, we were not able to come to an agreement,” University president Minouche Shafik wrote in an email to students and faculty early Monday, saying the protest has created an “unwelcoming environment” for many Jewish students and faculty. “The University will not divest from Israel.”

Monday is the last day of classes for the semester. Organizers and school officials had been in negotiations to remove the tents from the main campus lawns, which will be needed for graduation ceremonies in a couple of weeks. But the parties at the end of last week reached an impasse over divestment from companies and institutions that profit from Israel.

Instead, Shafik said the university offered to speed up a process for students to suggest “socially responsible” investment proposals and to make Columbia’s direct investment holdings more transparent. Also on the table was a faculty committee to address academic freedom and investments in health and education in Gaza.

The deal was rejected by student protesters, who have shown no sign they will accept any sort of compromise on divestment.

“These repulsive scare tactics mean nothing compared to the deaths of over 34,000 Palestinians,” Columbia University Apartheid Divest, a coalition of more than 100 student groups that runs the encampment, said in a statement. “We will not move until Columbia meets our demands or we are moved by force.”

Columbia told students that anyone who voluntarily leave the encampment by 2 p.m., identified themselves to the university, and signed a form promising to follow all school policies through the 2024-25 school year could finish this semester in “good standing.”

Demonstrators who do not agree to those terms could face discipline from probation and access restrictions, to suspension or expulsion, the notice to students said. Students already involved in a disciplinary process are not eligible for the deal.

“We urge those in the encampment to voluntarily disperse,” Shafik said. “We are consulting with a broader group in our community to explore alternative internal options to end this crisis as soon as possible.”

...continued

©2024 New York Daily News. Visit nydailynews.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.