January 30, 2025 | Flash Brief

Trump Vows to Deport Hamas-Supporting Students, Combat Antisemitism in America With Executive Order

January 30, 2025 | Flash Brief

Trump Vows to Deport Hamas-Supporting Students, Combat Antisemitism in America With Executive Order

Latest Developments

  • Trump Signs Executive Order Combatting Antisemitism: President Donald Trump issued an executive order on January 29 to combat antisemitism, pledging to deport individuals who publicly supported Hamas following its October 7, 2023, atrocities in Israel. The order cites the “unprecedented wave of vile” antisemitism witnessed at American universities throughout 2024 and expands on the president’s previous order targeting antisemitism, which was issued in 2019 during his first term in office.
  • Order Seeks to Stem Hamas Support in United States: Trump’s latest order outlines a federal plan to quell what the administration called a “campaign of intimidation, vandalism, and violence” in support of Hamas throughout America in the wake of the October 7 attacks. Actions in the report include directing the attorney general “to aggressively prosecute terroristic threats, arson, vandalism, and violence against American Jews,” along with deporting “resident aliens who joined in the pro-jihadist protests,” to which Trump added, “we will find you, and we will deport you.” The president also vowed to “cancel the student visas of all Hamas sympathizers on college campuses.”
  • Antisemitism in America at Record High: Since the October 7 Hamas attacks, there have been over 10,000 antisemitic incidents in the United States, according to the Anti-Defamation League. The data, published on the one-year anniversary of the atrocities, represents a 200 percent increase compared to the same period the previous year. The figures include over 8,015 instances of verbal or written harassment, 1,840 instances of vandalism, and over 150 instances of physical assault against Jews in America.

FDD Expert Response

“Foreign supporters of Hamas and other designated foreign terrorist organizations do not have a right to a visa to enter the United States, and they should not be allowed to deprive the civil rights of Americans while they’re here. This is an important concrete step toward countering malign foreign influence in higher education, which should be followed with additional moves to investigate and disrupt Hamas front groups and networks providing material support to campus violence.” Richard Goldberg, Senior Advisor

“Actions have consequences. The Trump administration is sending that message loud and clear to the disrupters who turned the quads on our nation’s university campuses into orgies of antisemitism. Jewish students are finally getting the protection they deserve.” David May, Research Manager and Senior Research Analyst

“President Trump’s executive order is common sense policy. Those living on visas in America, taking advantage of its great education system while praising terrorists dedicated to the country’s destruction, must go. The Trump administration is taking a necessary step in combatting not only antisemitism but also foreign-inspired violent extremism.” Aaron Goren, Research Analyst and Editor

FDD Background and Analysis

‘Student Intifada’: FBI Arrests George Mason Student Plotting Mass Casualty Attack on NYC Israeli Consulate,” FDD Flash Brief

College Presidents Are Losing the Battle against Campus Antisemitism,” by Bonnie Glick

Anti-Defamation League Report Card Grades 85 Universities’ Records on Antisemitism,” by Antonette Bowman

The Campus Antisemite’s Secret Weapon,” by Antonette Bowman

Issues:

Issues:

Domestic Extremism Israel Israel at War Military and Political Power

Topics:

Topics:

Israel Hamas Jewish people Donald Trump Richard Goldberg Federal Bureau of Investigation Antisemitism Anti-Defamation League David N. May American Jews