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New York University (NYU) has temporarily closed its Abu Dhabi campus and relocated all on-campus students, faculty, and staff after Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) declared American and Israeli universities in West Asia "legitimate targets."
The American University of Beirut also shifted to fully remote operations after the IRGC circulated a graphic naming specific institutions, including the American Universities of Sulaimani and Baghdad.
New York University confirmed on Monday that its Abu Dhabi campus has been temporarily closed and that students and staff residing on campus have already been relocated. All classes will continue remotely.
The university also confirmed the temporary closure of its small study abroad site in Tel Aviv, where classes continue remotely as well.
"We've continued to act out of an abundance of caution, and our priority in every decision is the safety of our students, faculty and staff," said Wiley Norvell, NYU Senior Vice President for University Relations and Public Affairs.
NYU Abu Dhabi, which opened in 2010, has approximately 2,200 students representing around 120 countries. About a quarter of its students are UAE nationals.
Earlier in March, the campus had moved classes online after Iranian missiles struck near the area, but had remained physically accessible.
The American University of Beirut shifted to fully remote operations on Sunday following the IRGC's statement.
IRGC-affiliated media subsequently circulated a graphic explicitly naming institutions considered targets, including the American Universities of Sulaimani and Baghdad in Iraq.
The IRGC's Statement No. 50 declared that all universities of "the occupying entity" Israel and American universities in West Asia are "legitimate targets" until two universities are struck in retaliation for the destruction of Iranian academic institutions.
The statement gave the U.S. government until noon Tehran time on Tuesday, March 31, to officially condemn the bombing of Iranian universities or face additional strikes beyond the two retaliatory strikes already promised.
The IRGC urged all staff, professors, students, and nearby residents to keep at least one kilometer from the listed campuses.
Iranian media reported multiple U.S. and Israeli strikes on educational facilities, including Isfahan University of Technology and Iran University of Science and Technology in Tehran.
The IRGC threat is presenting a formidable challenge to the network of American university campuses across the Gulf and Middle East.
Institutions currently navigating closures, remote operations, or evacuations include NYU Abu Dhabi, Weill Cornell Medicine-Qatar, Rochester Institute of Technology Dubai, and the American University of Beirut.
Education City in Qatar hosts campuses for Carnegie Mellon, Georgetown, Northwestern, Texas A&M and Virginia Commonwealth universities, in addition to Cornell.
Several national universities, including the University of Bahrain and the University of Jordan, also have partnerships with American institutions.
Classes at U.S.-affiliated campuses across the region have largely been remote since the start of the U.S.-Israeli offensive on Iran on Feb. 28.
In some cases, classes have been canceled due to extended spring breaks, and universities have been helping students evacuate the region.
The U.S. and Israel have maintained airstrikes on Iran since Feb. 28, killing more than 1,340 people, including then-Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
Iran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq and Gulf countries hosting U.S. military assets.
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