Columbia University administrators have backed down from their midnight deadline to disperse anti-Israel protesters. Instead, they said that the university decided to extend the negotiations by 48 hours because the protesters had agreed to some concessions but not to comply with university rules or disband the camp set up seven day prior.

A spokesperson for Columbia University told The Columbia Spectator that Columbia administrators and students from the encampment would continue to negotiate after the initial deadline, Tuesday midnight, passed without Columbia taking any action to disband or dissolve the encampment.

Students for Justice in Palestine, a pro-Hamas group of students at the university, posted a statement just after midnight on X saying that Columbia University Apartheid Divest had left the negotiating tables because the administration had threatened to send in National Guards and NYPD officers to disperse their encampment.

The statement said that “since good faith negotiations cannot be conducted if one party threatens to use force to extract concessions from the other, the student negotiation team has left and refused to return until the administration gives a written assurance that it will not unleash the NYPD or National Guard against its students.”

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Students are protesting Columbia University’s financial relationship to companies that do business in Israel, and U.S. backing for Israel’s ongoing military effort against Hamas following the mass murder of civilians by terrorist groups on October 7.

The spokesperson stated that the student protesters had made promises to remove a large number of tents, and force outside demonstrators to leave the area. Students also met FDNY safety standards and promised to remove any discriminatory or harassing language.

The Columbia University president Minouche Shafik gave a deadline of midnight for the protests. This was after the campus camp and the accompanying demonstrations outside grew more violent and antisemitic during the weekend.

“For a few days, a group of University Senators, faculty and administrators have been in contact with the student organizers. They are discussing the best way to dismantle the encampment and disperse it, as well as how the university can move forward. Shafik stated that the deadline for reaching an agreement in these talks is midnight tonight.

After the pro-Hamas protests erupted and Jewish students were harassed, she was widely called to resign. Jewish New Yorkers rallied on campus Monday to show solidarity with Jewish Students and speak out against campus antisemitism.

The protesters’ unruly behavior has forced Columbia to change the format of classes for the rest of the semester. According to National Review, the university prevented pro-Israel Columbia Professor Shai Davidai from entering campus and accessing the camp on Monday because they believed he would pose a danger to the safety of students.

As National Review reported, NYPD arrested more than 100 protesters last week, a day after encampment started. Activists began protesting outside the campus gate.

Barnard College, Columbia’s sister school suspended dozens students for their participation in the unapproved encampment. Isra Hirsi was one of them, and she is also Representative Ilhan Omar’s (D. Minn.) Daughter. Students who have no prior misconduct will be allowed to return to school if they follow campus rules.

Mike Johnson, the Speaker of the House, will visit Columbia University on Wednesday in order to show his solidarity with the Jewish students.