In a post on Truth Social, U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday that federal funding would be stopped for schools that allow "illegal protests," a reference to pro-Palestinian protests.

Additionally, he said students engaged in these protests "could be expelled, arrested or deported."

Since Israel launched its war on Gaza in October 2023, thousands of students at U.S. universities flooded onto campus lawns and other common areas to denounce Israel's actions and U.S. support for them.

At the height of the protests, in April and May, tent encampments cropped up at many U.S. universities across the country, including the University of Chicago.

Amid political pressure and accusations of anti-Semitism, many university leaders responded by calling in the police.

Campus protesters were arrested en masse, sometimes more than 100 at a time.