The daughter of ‘Squad’ member Ilhan Omar has faced criticism over claims she was sprayed with chemical weapons during a pro-Palestine protest at Columbia University.
Irsa Hirsi, 21, appeared on MSNBC Monday evening with another student to criticize the school for the way it handled the fallout from the demonstrations.
“There is definitely some hypocrisy here,” Hirsi said. “You can kind of see it in the students who sprayed us with the chemical weapons and the fact that there is no public information about what happened to them.”
She alleged that the school turned the protests into “a very public spectacle … while we did nothing to physically harm the students.”
Although it is unclear which “chemical” Hirsi was talking about, a Jewish student was suspended after spraying a foul-smelling liquid on protesters during a demonstration in January.
Ilhan Omar’s daughter, 21-year-old Irsa Hirsi, has faced criticism after claiming she was sprayed with chemical weapons during a pro-Palestine protest at Columbia University.
Hirsi was arrested for refusing to leave an on-campus encampment and subsequently suspended from Barnard College
Hirsi accused the school of treating pro-Palestinian protesters differently than students on the other side
The student, identified only as “John Doe,” filed a lawsuit against the university last week, claiming he sprayed “gag gifts” called “Liquid Ass” and “Wet Farts” into the air during the meeting and ‘not directly to someone else’. .’
Actor and comedian Michael Rapaport responded to Hirsi’s claims on X, formerly Twitter, writing, “We’re going to Jussie Smollet (sic) Street on this.”
Smollett was convicted in 2021 on five counts of disorderly conduct for committing a racist and homophobic attack on himself in 2019 and lying about it to Chicago police.
Rapaport has remained fiercely pro-Israel, appearing outside Columbia on Monday to label protesters on the other side as “bullies” and “cowards.”
Hirsi, a Barnard College student, was suspended after she was arrested along with about a hundred other students for refusing to leave an encampment on the Columbia campus.
“The reason we were suspended so early was due to the fact that we made ourselves known,” she said during the interview on Monday. ‘This was expected. We all knew the risks.”
She criticized the school for treating pro-Palestinian protesters with hostility toward counter-protesters.
It’s unclear what “chemical” Hirsi, who left, was sprayed with, but a Jewish student filed a lawsuit against the school when he was suspended for spraying “fart spray” at an assembly
The lawsuit claims the unnamed student sprayed “gag gifts” called “Liquid Ass” and “Wet Farts” (pictured) into the air and “not directly at an individual”
Actor Michael Rapaport indirectly accused Hirsi of lying by drawing a comparison to Jussie Smollett, who was found guilty of organizing a racist and homophobic attack on himself.
“We’re going down Jussie Smollet (sic) Street with this,” Rapaport wrote on X, formerly Twitter
“This is 100 percent targeted,” Hirsi said of the school issuing disciplinary warnings
“This is 100 percent targeted,” Hirsi said.
“Every protest we have, there’s a group of counter-protesters who bring all their stuff, their flags and things like that, and they’re not seen as having unauthorized protests, or that they’ve actually been given the kind of disciplinary warnings that a lot of our fellow organizers received from them.’
Omar, a Democrat from Minnesota, supported her daughter, writing in a social media post that she was “extremely proud.”
“She has always led with courage and compassion, from organizing a statewide school walk on the 20th anniversary of Columbine at age 15, to leading the largest youth climate rally at our nation’s Capitol at 16 age, and now pushing her school to stand up. against genocide,” Omar wrote.
Columbia has declined to comment on the pending lawsuit, which says John Doe’s actions are “an innocent expression to demonstrate dissatisfaction with the pro-Hamas pro-Palestinian message through a joke, and nothing more.”
The student was temporarily suspended on January 21. However, that suspension became effective through May 2025 after the university found him responsible for disruptive behavior, harassment and endangerment.
Omar supported her daughter in the aftermath of her arrest and suspension, praising Hirsi in a social media post
Jewish student suing Columbia claims his actions were ‘an innocent expression to show dissatisfaction with the pro-Hamas pro-Palestinian message’
Hirsi was one of more than a hundred students arrested for refusing to leave the “Gaza solidarity encampment” on the Columbia grounds.
The lawsuit claims the school’s decision tarnished the student’s reputation, adding that he was trolled by classmates on social media and portrayed as “dangerous” in a statement condemning the incident by former interim Provost Dennis Mitchell .
According to the lawsuit, students who filed reports with the Public Safety Bureau refused the medical evaluation and refused counseling.
“To date, there is no medical or physical evidence to support the claims of students who claimed they were harmed and/or affected by the spray,” it said.
‘Indeed, the spray is harmless, non-toxic and can be purchased by anyone on Amazon.’
In the aftermath of the attack, a handful of students reported burning eyes, headaches and nausea. At least three students claim to have sought medical help.