The U.S. Justice Department is examining whether student protests at Columbia University over the Gaza war violated federal terrorism laws, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said on Friday. Blanche said the investigation is also looking into civil rights violations tied to the demonstrations that roiled the New York campus last year.

The US Justice Department is investigating whether individuals involved in the pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University last year violated federal anti-terrorism laws, Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche announced Friday.

The US Justice Department on Friday said it was probing what it said were possible violations of terrorism laws during protests over the Gaza war at Columbia University. The move is said to have put a fresh pressure on the epicenter of last year’s nationwide anti-Israel activism.