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.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche said arrests were part of the president’s “mission to end antisemitism in this country.”

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.