Columbia University students chain themselves to gate in protest of Mahmoud Khalil's detention by ICE

"FREE MAHMOUD KHALIL. NAME THE TRUSTEE. Jewish students will not leave. They will remain chained to the campus gates until @Columbia University is held accountable. WHO REPORTED MAHMOUD TO ICE?" the group wrote on X.

A spokesperson for Columbia University told Fox News Digital that the individuals chained to the gate on campus were removed by the institution's public safety officers after around two hours.

"We are monitoring a disruption at the gate of St. Paul's Chapel involving approximately four individuals chained to a gate, which constitutes violations of the Rules of University Conduct. Individuals complied with the demand for identification but refused to leave the area. The chains were removed by Columbia's Public Safety and the individuals were escorted off campus.

"We will follow the process established in the Rules of University Conduct for enforcing violations. Our focus is on preserving our core mission to teach, create, and advance knowledge while ensuring a safe campus for our community," the spokesperson said. 

Around 80 protesters were just outside the St. Paul's Chapel gate on Columbia University's campus, a spokesperson for the New York Police Department told Fox News.

Protesters also draped a poster off of a nearby overpass that read: "Free Mahmoud Khalil. Name the trustees."

Khalil was born in Syria and came to the U.S. in 2022 before becoming a permanent resident in 2024.