The Trump administration has accused Harvard University of violating civil rights laws by failing to protect Jewish and Israeli students from harassment and threats, warning that the university risks losing all federal funding if immediate changes are not made.

In a letter sent to Harvard, federal officials said the university had shown “deliberate indifference” to complaints raised by Jewish students who reported being targeted on campus.

The letter, seen by the BBC, states that “failure to institute adequate changes immediately will result in the loss of all federal financial resources.”

“Harvard may of course continue to operate free of federal privileges, and perhaps such an opportunity will spur a commitment to excellence that will help Harvard thrive once again,” reads the letter addressed to university president Alan Garber.

The letter follows an investigation that found the “majority” of Jewish students had experienced discrimination or bias, and about one quarter had felt physically threatened.

Incidents included assaults, students being spat on, and images circulating that depicted a dollar sign in the Star of David. Antisemitic stickers, including one replacing the Star of David with a swastika on an Israeli flag, were also reported.

"Harvard's inaction in the face of these civil rights violations is a clear example of the demographic hierarchy that has taken hold of the university," the letter said. "Harvard's commitment to racial hierarchies—where individuals are sorted and judged according to their membership in an oppressed group identity and not individual merit—has enabled anti-Semitism to fester."

The notice is formally termed a “notice of violation,” which often precedes legal proceedings or a negotiated resolution if corrective action is taken.

Harvard has not responded publicly to the latest letter.

However, in April, the university released findings from an internal investigation that revealed deep polarization within the campus due to the war in Gaza. The report acknowledged that students on both sides of the conflict felt unsafe.

In a message that accompanied the report, Garber apologized for “moments in which we failed to meet the high expectations we rightfully set for our community.”

This latest development is part of a growing confrontation between Harvard and the Trump administration, which has accused several universities of failing to address antisemitism amid student protests over the Gaza conflict.

In May, the administration ordered federal agencies to review over 30 contracts with Harvard worth around $100 million, with some grants already frozen. It also attempted to block the university’s ability to enroll international students.

Last month, Columbia University received a similar notice of violation and is currently negotiating with the administration over its funding.