Officials at Columbia University, facing surging tensions on campus that raised safety concerns, have announced all classes will be virtual on Monday as Passover begins.Columbia President Minouche Shafik said in a statement the decision was made to 맥스카지노�deescalate the rancor and give us all a chance to consider next steps.맥스카지노�The move underscores how tense the situation has become at the Ivy League school and the enormous challenge facing Shafik to get the situation under control.Billionaire Robert Kraft, the owner of the New England Patriots and a prominent Columbia graduate, suggested he is withholding donations to the university because he맥스카지노�s 맥스카지노�no longer confident that Columbia can protect its students and staff.맥스카지노�맥스카지노�The school I love so much 맥스카지노� the one that welcomed me and provided me with so much opportunity 맥스카지노� is no longer an institution I recognize,맥스카지노� Kraft, founder of the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism, said in a statement on X, formerly known as Twitter. 맥스카지노�I am not comfortable supporting the university until corrective action is taken.맥스카지노�At Yale University, at least 16 people had been arrested 맥스카지노� including some students 맥스카지노� after police blocked off entrances during response to a protest at Hewitt Quadrangle & Beinecke Plaza, the school맥스카지노�s independent college newspaper, The Yale Daily News reported Monday morning.맥스카지노�Cops have gathered at Beinecke Plaza, where pro-Palestine protesters urging Yale to divest from military weapons manufacturers set up tents overnight 맥스카지노� the third night of their ongoing encampment,맥스카지노� the Yale Daily News said.Journalists from the Yale Daily News were also threatened with arrest if they did not move from the plaza, according to reports.CNN has reached out to Yale University administration, the Yale Police Department and the New Haven Police Department in Connecticut for more information.Tensions at many universities have been high ever since the Oct. 7 terror attack on Israel by Hamas. However, the situation at Columbia escalated in recent days after university officials testified before Congress last week about antisemitism on campus and pro-Palestinian protests on and near campus surged.At Columbia, 맥스카지노�During the coming days, a working group of Deans, university administrators and faculty members will try to bring this crisis to a resolution. That includes continuing discussions with the student protestors and identifying actions we can take as a community to enable us to peacefully complete the term and return to respectful engagement with each other,맥스카지노� the president said in her Monday statement.As the situation has unfolded, Shafik has faced new calls for her resignation, and a rabbi linked to the university even urged Jewish students to stay home due to concerns about their safety as Passover, a major Jewish holiday, is set to begin Monday evening.The safety of Columbia맥스카지노�s community is 맥스카지노�our number one priority,맥스카지노� a university spokesperson told CNN in a statement Sunday.맥스카지노�We are acting on concerns we are hearing from our Jewish students and are providing additional support and resources to ensure that our community remains safe,맥스카지노� the statement added.The White House, New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and New York City Mayor Eric Adams all weighed in over the weekend, denouncing calls for violence against Jews.Adams said he was 맥스카지노�horrified and disgusted with the antisemitism spewed at and around맥스카지노� Columbia and said the New York Police Department 맥스카지노�will not hesitate to arrest anyone맥스카지노� found to be breaking the law.Rabbi Elie Buechler, a rabbi associated with Columbia University맥스카지노�s Orthodox Union Jewish Learning Initiative on Campus, confirmed to CNN on Sunday he sent a WhatsApp message to a group of about 300 mostly Orthodox Jewish students 맥스카지노�strongly맥스카지노� recommending they return home and remain there.In his message, Buechler wrote recent events at the university 맥스카지노�have made it clear that Columbia University맥스카지노�s Public Safety and the NYPD cannot guarantee Jewish students맥스카지노� safety.맥스카지노�맥스카지노�It deeply pains me to say that I would strongly recommend you return home as soon as possible and remain home until the reality in and around campus has dramatically improved,맥스카지노� the message reads.The campus Hillel said in a Sunday post on X they 맥스카지노�do not believe that Jewish students should leave맥스카지노� the campus, but that the university and City of New York must act to protect students from harassment.Student: I맥스카지노�m 맥스카지노�terrified, angry, upset맥스카지노�맥스카지노�If I had my child at Columbia, I also would tell them to go home,맥스카지노� Hagar Chemali, an adjunct associate professor of International and Public Affairs at the university, told CNN Monday. 맥스카지노�It맥스카지노�s not just because of the tension on campus, it맥스카지노�s also because those protests on campus have invited extremists outside.맥스카지노�Organizers of the campus protest 맥스카지노� Columbia University Apartheid Divest and Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine 맥스카지노� said in a statement, 맥스카지노�We have been peaceful,맥스카지노� and distanced themselves from non-student protestors who have gathered outside the campus, calling them 맥스카지노�inflammatory individuals who do not represent us.맥스카지노�맥스카지노�We firmly reject any form of hate or bigotry and stand vigilant against non-students attempting to disrupt the solidarity being forged among students 맥스카지노� Palestinian, Muslim, Arab, Jewish, Black and pro-Palestinian classmates and colleagues who represent the full diversity of our country,맥스카지노� the activists맥스카지노� statement continued.Columbia student, Noah Lederman, told CNN he was 맥스카지노�terrified, angry, upset, and horrified that the university failed to take action.맥스카지노� Lederman said he had been accosted in early February and had asked the university for remote learning options. 맥스카지노�What맥스카지노�s happening on campus is blatantly antisemitic,맥스카지노� he added.맥스카지노�Columbia students organizing in solidarity with Palestine 맥스카지노� including Jewish students 맥스카지노� have faced harassment, doxxing, and now arrest by the NYPD. These are the main threats to the safety of Jewish Columbia students,맥스카지노� Jonathan Ben-Menachem, a Ph.D. student, told CNN.맥스카지노�On the other hand, student protesters have led interfaith joint prayers for several days now, and Passover Seder will be held at the Gaza Solidarity Encampment tomorrow,맥스카지노� he went on. 맥스카지노�Saying that student protesters are a threat to Jewish students is a dangerous smear.맥스카지노�Demonstrations are also taking place at other campuses. Pro-Palestinian students at Emerson College and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology set up protest encampments as an act of solidarity with students at Columbia University, according to WCVB. Solidarity rallies have also taken place at Yale, Harvard, the University of North Carolina, and Boston University.Crisis is a test for Columbia맥스카지노�s new presidentThe crisis at Columbia amounts to a massive test for Shafik, who took the helm of the university less than a year ago.Rep. Elise Stefanik, the New York Republican and frequent critic of Ivy League schools, called for Shafik to immediately step down.맥스카지노�It is crystal clear that Columbia University 맥스카지노� previously a beacon of academic excellence founded by Alexander Hamilton 맥스카지노� needs new leadership,맥스카지노� Stefanik said in a statement on Sunday.Following a disastrous hearing on campus antisemitism before Congress in December, the presidents of Harvard University and the University of Pennsylvania came under enormous pressure and both resigned.Shafik testified to the House Education Committee on the same subject last Wednesday, and the protests on campus have escalated in the days since, prompting Republican committee chair Rep. Virginia Foxx to warn university leaders of consequences if they do not rein in the protests.맥스카지노�Columbia맥스카지노�s continued failure to restore order and safety promptly to campus constitutes a major breach of the University맥스카지노�s Title VI obligations, upon which federal financial assistance is contingent, and which must immediately be rectified,맥스카지노� Foxx wrote in a letter.As Passover begins Monday, Jewish student organizations have increased security for their upcoming events and services.Police will be present at the Kraft Center, a Jewish cultural center shared by Columbia and Barnard College, throughout Passover, and students will be able to get walking escorts to and from the building starting Monday, according to an email from Brian Cohen, the center맥스카지노�s executive director.Chabad, another Jewish organization at the university, said they are still planning on hosting Passover celebrations but have hired additional security to protect students.