Hollywood actor Alec Baldwin punches anti-Israel protester in coffee shop

Hollywood actor Alec Baldwin found himself embroiled in a contentious encounter inside a local coffee shop when he reacted to an anti-Israel protester by knocking her phone away. The incident, captured on video and shared widely online, portrays Baldwin at the counter and engaged in a phone conversation when approached by the protester.

The individual, identified as the host of the "anti-fascist" podcast "Crackhead Barney & Friends," persistently urged Baldwin to publicly endorse "Free Palestine." Despite her repeated demands, Baldwin remained steadfast and visibly agitated. The footage depicts him trying to guide the protester out of the establishment, firmly holding the door open while shaking his head in refusal to her ongoing chants.
As Baldwin approaches the camera, the video abruptly concludes, capturing his unequivocal refusal and the protester's additional jabs concerning Baldwin's legal case in New Mexico regarding the accidental shooting death of cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on the set of the film "Rust."

Tensions Rise at US Universities

Meanwhile, law enforcement officials detained numerous individuals involved in demonstrations supporting Palestine at Yale University in Connecticut and New York University in Manhattan on Monday, amidst the continuing conflict in Gaza, which has reverberated across university campuses in the United States.

The police interventions followed Columbia University's decision to suspend in-person classes on Monday after protesters erected tent encampments on its New York City campus the previous week.

According to the student-run Yale Daily News, protesters in New Haven, Connecticut, disrupted traffic around Yale's campus, demanding that the university divest from companies manufacturing military weapons. Police arrested more than 45 protesters.

In New York, police stepped in shortly after nightfall as hundreds of demonstrators defied university warnings, assembling in a plaza where they had spent hours. Social media footage depicted police dismantling tents in the protesters' encampment.

(With inputs from agencies)