The President of the United States of America (US), Donald Trump, signed an executive order on Wednesday, January 29, aimed at combating antisemitism. The order pledges to deport non-citizen college students and others who participated in pro-Palestinian protests, reported The Indian Express.

Campus unrest
In April-May 2024, student protests over the Gaza conflict, particularly at Columbia University in New York, shook US campuses. Following months of criticism over her handling of the protests, Columbia University's President, Minouche Shafik, resigned in August 2024.

Details on the order
The executive order includes a fact sheet promising immediate action from the Justice Department. This includes prosecuting violent acts like terroristic threats, arson, vandalism, and violence against American Jews.

The order also commits to using federal resources to address the rise in antisemitism since the October 7, 2023, Hamas attack on Israel.

Deportation threats
In the fact sheet, President Trump addressed those involved in pro-Palestinian protests, warning non-citizen participants that they would be targeted for deportation by 2025, as per The New Indian Express.

He also pledged to cancel student visas for those sympathetic to Hamas, describing college campuses as "infested with radicalism."

Alarming decision
Rights groups and legal experts have raised concerns that the new measure may infringe upon constitutional free speech rights. Carrie DeCell, a senior staff attorney at the Knight First Amendment Institute at Columbia University, emphasised that the First Amendment protects political speech, including that of foreign citizens in the US.

The executive order could lead to an inventory and analysis of court cases involving K-12 schools and universities, particularly concerning civil rights violations during pro-Palestinian protests.

This could result in actions aimed at removing foreign students and staff from educational institutions.