Columbia student protesters stage walkout from Hillary Clinton’s class

Dozens of Columbia University students staged a walkout from former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's class there on Wednesday in protest of the school’s handling of a truck seen near campus displaying the images of students belonging to groups who signed an anti-Israel statement, a report says. 

Roughly 30 students of the class of 300 abruptly stood up and left the room a half hour into the lecture on women’s involvement in peace processes hosted by Clinton and Keren Yarhi-Milo, the dean of Columbia’s School of International and Public Affairs (SIPA), according to The New York Times. 

The students reportedly were demonstrating against the school’s response to a truck that appeared near campus last week broadcasting the message "Columbia’s Leading Antisemites" and showing images of students belonging to groups that had signed a statement claiming that Israel was at fault for the October 7 massacre by Hamas. 

The students said the images of their classmates that appeared on the truck had been taken from a private online platform for students at SIPA and demanded that Columbia provide "immediate legal support for affected students" and "a commitment to student safety, well-being and privacy," the newspaper added.

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Hillary Clinton addresses a heckler during a Columbia University event on October 23. (Columbia University)

Clinton herself has expressed support for the state of Israel and recently has rejected calls for a ceasefire. 

There also were dozens of other protesters who gathered near the lobby of the building where the walkout was unfolding, according to the New York Times. When the class ended, the demonstrators fell silent, expecting Clinton and the dean to walk past them while leaving. But word then spread that the lecturers instead had departed through a side door and avoided the crowd completely, the newspaper adds. 

In a message from Yarhi-Milo to students on Tuesday, she wrote "I am deeply disturbed to see that SIPA students and faculty have been subjected to doxxing campaigns. 

"I unequivocally condemn such actions and I’m doing everything in my power to bring these activities to an end on our campus and online," she continued. "To that end, I have formed a SIPA Task Force on Doxxing and Student Safety, effective immediately." 

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Supporters of both Israeli and Palestinians engage with each other at Columbia University on October 12 in New York City. (Spencer Platt/Getty Images)

"The SIPA Task Force on Doxxing and Student Safety will play a critical role in making recommendations to the university and local government to protect our students," Yarhi-Milo added. "Specifically, the Task Force will develop recommendations to prevent doxxing, protect the identities and personal information of our students, and develop proposals to reduce tensions among various students and student organizations regarding controversial national or international events that affect our community in New York City." 

Last week, Clinton, speaking at the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy's 30th-anniversary event, pushed back on activists demanding a ceasefire between Israel and Hamas, saying that such an agreement would be a "gift" for the terrorist government. 

"People who are calling for a ceasefire now, don’t understand Hamas," Clinton said, according to The Jerusalem Post. "That is not possible." 

This image made from undated bodycam video footage taken by a downed Hamas militant and released by Israel Defense Forces shows a Hamas militant walking around a residential neighborhood at an undisclosed location in southern Israel.  (Israel Defense Forces via AP)

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She continued, "It would be such a gift to Hamas, because they would spend whatever time there was a ceasefire in effect rebuilding their armaments, creating stronger positions to be able to fend off an eventual assault by the Israelis." 

Fox News’ Anders Hagstrom and Timothy H.J. Nerozzi contributed to this report. 

Greg Norman is a reporter at Fox News Digital.