DHS agents detained Columbia University neuroscience student
Federal officers entered Columbia University property on Thursday and detained a student, university officials said
Peter Titmuss/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
Department of Homeland Security agents detained a student at Columbia University, the institution’s acting president said in a statement statement on thursday. The university’s student newspaper identified the student as Ellie Aghayeva Columbia Daily Spectator, It was released later on Thursday, according to an update posted on Aghayeva’s social media accounts.
According to her LinkedIn account, Aghayeva describes herself as a neuroscience researcher and is pursuing graduate degrees in neurobiology and behavioral and political science. a statement Reviewed by new York Times And provided by Aghayeva’s friends to the American Association of University Professors, she is also recognized as an international student with a visa to major in neuroscience and political science.
“By bringing students to the United States to study, we are exporting education around the world, and it is being undermined in ways that are really problematic,” says Virginia Page Fortna, the Harold Brown Professor of American Foreign and Security Policy at Columbia University.
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Aghayeva is listed as a co-author on the book titled ways of thinking and imagining, Which explores mental imagination and visual perception. The book was published by Living Lab, run by Alfredo Spagna, a former Columbia University faculty member who is also a co-author of the book. His research focuses on the neural and psychological basis of visual perception and mental imagery. Spagna did not immediately respond to a request for comment. scientific American.
Claire Shipman, acting president of Columbia University, said in the statement that federal agents “made misrepresentations in order to gain entry to the building to search for a ‘missing person’.” Columbia did not confirm the student’s identity. scientific American.
The DHS action came exactly a year after federal immigration agents detained Mahmoud Khalil, another Columbia student, in March 2025. He was released last June, and legal proceedings related to his case continue.
DHS did not immediately respond to a request for comment. scientific American.
Editor’s note (2/26/26): This is a developing story and may be updated.
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