US president makes further claims of antisemitism against Ivy League school amid wider dispute with higher eduction institutions
Donald Trump has announced that his administration is seeking $1bn in damages from Harvard University, the latest step in a long-running battle with the university over allegations of antisemitism.
In a Truth Social post late on Monday, Trump accused the Ivy League school of being “strongly antisemitic”, adding that Harvard president Alan Garber “has done a terrible job of rectifying a very bad situation for his institution and, more importantly, America itself”.
Since returning to office, Trump has repeatedly come after higher education institutions, including Harvard, accusing the university of mishandling antisemitism and allowing alleged civil rights violations on a campus he says is dominated by “radical left” ideologies – a charge academics and free speech experts have denounced as a threat to academic freedom.
The announcement came hours after the New York Times reported that Trump had allegedly dropped a previous demand for $200m as part of a settlement over allegations that Harvard failed to effectively address antisemitism on campus, according to people familiar with the matter.
