The U.S. Justice Department alleged on Tuesday that the University of California, Los Angeles has failed to prevent a hostile environment for Jewish and Israeli students since campus protests erupted after the start of Israel's war in Gaza.
The Justice Department alleged UCLA violated federal civil rights law. The university had no immediate comment.
The U.S. government has been probing multiple universities, including UCLA, for their handling of last year's pro-Palestinian protests against Israel's military assault in Gaza, which followed an October 2023 Hamas attack.
President Donald Trump's administration has threatened to freeze federal funding for U.S. universities over the demonstrations. Rights advocates have raised concerns about free speech, academic freedom and due process.
The government alleges that universities, including UCLA, did not control antisemitism during the demonstrations. Trump has repeatedly labeled pro-Palestinian protesters as antisemitic and as supporters of extremism.
Protesters say the government wrongly equates criticism of Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories with antisemitism and advocacy for Palestinian rights with support for extremism.
Campus protesters demanded an end to U.S. support for Israel and a commitment that their universities will cease investing in weapons makers and companies that support Israel's occupation of Palestinian territories.
Rights advocates have noted a rise in antisemitism, Islamophobia and anti-Arab biasin the U.S. due to Washington ally Israel's war in Gaza.
GOVERNMENT SEEKS VOLUNTARY RESOLUTION DEAL WITH UCLA
Earlier on Tuesday, UCLA agreed to pay over $6 million to settle a lawsuit by some students and a professor who alleged antisemitism.
Concerns of anti-Palestinian incidents were also raised at UCLA in the spring of 2024, when a pro-Israeli mob stormed and attacked the tent camp of pro-Palestinian protesters with clubs and poles in one of the most violent incidents from the protests.
On Monday, prosecutors said a man charged with hate crime for his role in that attack entered a plea deal for a diversionary program to avoid jail time, marking the end of the only felony case connected with that attack.
Dozens of people were arrested during the UCLA encampment protests. Then-UCLA police chief John Thomas left the campus police department last year.
The Justice Department said it now seeks to enter into a voluntary resolution agreement with UCLA "to ensure that the hostile environment is eliminated and reasonable steps are taken to prevent its recurrence."
Last week, Columbia University in New York City said it will pay over $200 million to the U.S. government in a settlement with the Trump administration to resolve federal probes and have most of its suspended federal funding restored.
