New York, New York - UN-appointed experts on Monday branded US authorities' arrests of foreign students for pro-Palestinian protests on campus "disproportionate" and called for their rights to be respected.

US campuses were rocked last year by student protests calling on universities to divest from Israel amid the ongoing atrocities in Palestine.

Immigration officers arrested Mahmoud Khalil, a green card holder and leader of protests at Columbia University, on March 8 after President Donald Trump vowed to deport foreign pro-Palestinian student demonstrators.

The White House later said authorities had supplied a list of other Columbia students that officers were seeking to deport over their alleged participation in protests.

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"These actions are disproportionate, unnecessary, and discriminatory and will only lead to more trauma and polarization negatively impacting the learning environment within university campuses," the UN experts said in a statement.

"These actions create a chilling effect on the rights to freedom of expression, assembly, and association," they added.

The Trump administration has moved to revoke Khalil's residency permit, accusing him of leading "activities aligned with Hamas".

Khalil's lawyer later told a court that he had been taken to Louisiana and denied legal advice.

The independent experts, appointed by the UN to report on rights issues, urged US authorities "to cease repression and retaliation, including in the form of arbitrary detention of US lawful permanent residents, and removal of international students who have participated in university protests".

The Trump administration cut $400 million in federal funding for Columbia University, accusing it of not sufficiently addressing antisemitism.

Columbia administrators later said they had suspended and expelled a number of students who had occupied a campus building last year.