New York, August 15 (RHC)-- The embattled president of Columbia University has stepped down after just one year on the job.  Minouche Shafik’s resignation comes in the wake of her widely condemned crackdown on campus protests against the war on Gaza, during which she called in the NYPD to violently clear tents and arrest scores of peaceful student protesters. 

Shafik said: “I have decided that my moving on at this point would best enable Columbia to traverse the challenges ahead.”  She plans to return to Britain to work in international development for the Labour government.

In response to the news, the Columbia chapter of Jewish Voice for Peace said: “The students of Columbia will never forget the sheer violence unleashed upon us by Minouche Shafik, and we will not be placated by her removal as the university’s repression of the pro-Palestinian student movement continues.”