Israeli professor leaves Columbia University over anti-Israeli protests

Israeli Columbia University professor Shai Davidai left the school on Wednesday after ongoing frustration with anti-Israel protests on campus.

“I can confirm that I have decided to leave Columbia and that the university’s failure to take the anti-Jewish, anti-Israeli and anti-American protests seriously is the reason,” Davidai told Fox News Digital. “Columbia leadership has failed, the faculty has lost its moral compass and too many of my colleagues just look the other way.”

He added, “I don’t trust the acting president, the university’s leadership or the entire board of trustees to do the right thing, and I don’t see my colleagues stepping up to hold them accountable. I wouldn’t advise anyone to come work here, so what’s the point of staying?”

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Columbia University professor Shai Davidai has been a frequent critic of the school’s response to widespread anti-Israel protests. (Courtesy of Shai Davidai)

A Columbia University spokesperson also confirmed the news to Fox News Digital.

“Assistant Professor of Business Shai Davidai has decided to depart Columbia, effective July 8, 2025. The University thanks him for his service and wishes him the best in his future endeavors,” the spokesperson said in a statement.

Davidai also announced on Wednesday that the school had dropped an ongoing investigation launched against him in February 2024.

“BOOM. (Please help me spread this. @Columbia tried to smear my name. I wouldn’t let them. Today, they finally admitted that I hadn’t done anything wrong.),” Davidai wrote on X, including a note from the university.

The note said that the Office of Institutional Equity closed its investigation without “any findings or conclusions of wrongdoing, and without imposing any discipline or penalty.”

Davidai had been suspended by Columbia University in the past after he had allegedly “repeatedly harassed and intimidated” students during an Oct. 7 anniversary protest in 2024. He was also barred from the school’s main campus in April 2024 after planning a pro-Israel demonstration against anti-Israel protesters.

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Davidai told Fox News Digital that the school’s leadership has failed to hold people accountable for disruptive anti-Israel protests. (Reuters/Ryan Murphy)

Davidai has been an outspoken defender of Israel and Jewish students since the Oct. 7 terror attacks and has called out his school for allowing anti-Israel protests and disruptions on campus. 

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He went viral after giving a speech weeks after the terror attack, calling then-president Minouche Shafik a coward for failing to stand against “pro-terror” organizations.