NEW YORK — Pro-Palestinian New York City demonstrators marked Monday’s Oct. 7 anniversary with protests at Wall Street, Washington Square Park and Morningside Heights, matching wits with cops and college officials who were trying to stay ahead of the crowds.

Visitors to Columbia University’s uptown campus found their access suddenly blocked, with security boosted just hours after a post-midnight message from interim university president Katrina Armstrong, who expressed “concern about the potential for violence.”

Gone was a QR-code system that had been in place for approved visitors. In its place were more barricades and a beefed-up security presence.

“We have several student groups planning for special events and non-violent protests and are working diligently to support those plans,” Armstrong wrote in a statement released just after midnight.

“At the same time, we have also learned and had evidence of plans of groups not affiliated with Columbia choosing to come to our Morningside campus for activities that raise concern about the potential for violence.”

Later Armstrong visited a pro-Israel demonstration today with the head of the Columbia Hillel, the main Jewish center on campus, as pro-Palestinian protesters gathered on the steps of Low Library following a student walkout.

“Resistance is justified when people are occupied,” the pro-Palestinian demonstrators chanted. “Resistance is glorious, and we will be victorious.”

Students from more than a dozen local college campuses walked out of class and headed to Washington Square Park, before joining a larger citywide protest organized by the pro-Palestinian group Within Our Lifetime. The organization was originally formed by local students at the City University of New York.

Meanwhile, Financial District demonstrators got a rude awakening from cops who forced them to move from the New York Stock Exchange building to a barricaded perimeter that started at Broad Street and Exchange Place, nearly half a block away.

Officials said the pro-Palestinian protesters could not stay in front of the NYSE because demonstrators had spray painted there in the past.

“We’re seeing an abridgement of our freedom of speech rights, our right to assembly,” said Nerdeen Kiswani, 30, chair of Within our Lifetime, which organized the protest.

“We were standing in front of the New York Stock Exchange because this is where major manufacturing, weapons manufacturers are traded, where Wall Street pockets blood money using our tax dollars to fund thousands of tons of bombs on the people of Gaza.”

Martin, a local resident, said he was tired of the war — and the protesters.

“It’s just annoying because I’m down here and all we have is protests,” said Martin, who declined to give his last name because he feared retaliation from the protesters.

“It’s protest central down here. It’s everywhere you go. And it’s only really one side, and when they do come, they have to throw a camera in your face. I’m not Israeli but it’s just wrong. They wear masks. They’re amazingly obnoxious. They say a lot of crap. They’re very aggressive. Who wants to deal with that? They’re not pleasant.”

Mayor Eric Adams said police were working hard to make sure things don’t get out of hand.

“The people have a right to protest but not a right to destroy our city,” Adams said to cops during a Battery Park City meet up. “But we can’t do it without you. I thank you for being out here making sure that those who protest protest peacefully.”

It was on this day 12 months ago that the terrorist group Hamas launched a surprise attack on Israel, which killed more than 1,200 people, mostly civilians, according to Israeli official figures. Hamas took 251 hostages back to Gaza, and a year later, some 64 are still detained, while 117 have been freed and 70 confirmed dead.

Israel, in turn, launched an invasion that has since resulted in the deaths of more than 40,000 Palestinians in Gaza, more than half of whom were women and children, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

Much of New York City and the world marked the day with solemn ceremonies, prayer vigils and calls for peace.

“We must not and we cannot waver in our efforts to bring the hostages home. It is long past time,” U.S. Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-NY, said in a statement after a morning visit to his Brooklyn synagogue.

“Hamas displayed such viciousness on that horrible day to try to scare the Israeli people, the American people and freedom-loving people of the world into submission — but they failed.”

In a series of social media posts, protesters said they picketed the Brooklyn residence of NYPD Deputy Commissioner of Counterterrorism Rebecca Weiner. One of the protesters wearing a Columbia sweatshirt held a sign, saying: “Revenge for Hind’s Hall,” the name protesters gave to Columbia’s occupied Hamilton Hall.

For days, student-protesters at Columbia have been reading the names of Palestinians killed during Israel’s war in Gaza in the center of campus. Meanwhile, Jewish students are also hosting events and demonstrations, including a screening of a documentary on the events of Oct. 7, an art installation, and a vigil where students will say Hebrew prayers for loss.

Armstrong replaced former university President Minouche Shafik, who resigned after coming under fire for her handling of several weeks of tense pro-Palestinian protests in the spring.

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