Police disperse a pro-Palestinian protest at a US university: dozens of people are detained

Police dispersed pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University/Channel 24 Collage (Photo by Getty Images)

For the third week in the United States, pro-Palestinian protests have not subsided, which began in more than 30 universities in the country. The prestigious Columbia University in New York was also at the epicenter of events, where the largest number of protesters gathered.

On the night of May 1, Columbia University The police burst in and began to disperse the protest. During the clashes, law enforcement detained at least 50 pro-Palestinian protesters.

What's happening at US universities

After Hamas militants attacked Israel on October 7, 2023, the world was rocked by pro-Palestinian protests. In different countries, activists staged rallies in support of Palestinian independence and condemned the actions of Israel, which responded by striking the Gaza Strip. These protests either subsided or began again, and on April 17, 2023, pro-Palestinian activists began organizing demonstrations at US universities.

Thus, the epicenter of events became the prestigious Columbia University in New York . The organizer of the protests was Mahmoud Khalil, who insisted that all the protesters were university students. Thus, the protests began on April 17, but the next day, April 18, the number of protesters increased sharply after the head of this educational institution testified in Congress about the problem of anti-Semitism on campus.

< p>The network does not name the number of pro-Palestinian protesters, but their number reached several hundred. Law enforcement officers previously detained about 100 people who advocated support for Palestine on the campus of Columbia University.

Protests at Columbia University: watch video

Such protests have spread to more than 30 different US universities. Protesters set up tent cities, occupied buildings of educational institutions for their protests and hung out their posters in support of the Gaza Strip and Palestine.

Rally in Columbia University reached a peak of

At first, protesters set up a tent city on the territory of Columbia University. However, on Monday, April 29, pro-Palestinian demonstrators seized one of the buildings, Hamilton Hall. The protesters barricaded themselves in the building and did not allow anyone in.

The university administration tried to resolve the conflict on its own, but this did not work. Pro-Palestinian protesters refused to leave Hamilton Hall, and the university turned to law enforcement for help.

Law enforcement officers entered the university grounds: watch the video

“Hamilton Hall” is one of the main buildings of Columbia university. It is known that the departments of German and Slavic languages, as well as Columbia College, are located there. Interestingly, since its construction in 1907, Hamilton Hall has been occupied by students at least 5 times. One of the most resonant cases was in 1968, when protests against the Vietnam War broke out at the university.

The New York police ordered the protesters to leave the building, but this order was not followed. Then, on the night of May 1, police stormed Columbia University and dispersed the protesters. Western media write that at least 50 protesters were detained. Although the organizers of the pro-Palestinian protests claim that they are all students, the administration claims that unknown third parties also participated in the seizure of Hamilton Hall.

Police detained protesters at Columbia University: watch video

At the same time, the administration of Columbia University announced that it had begun expelling those who participate in pro-Palestinian protests. They noted that pogroms and destruction on university territory are not freedom of speech, but vandalism. Therefore, the administration of Columbia University, together with law enforcement officers, began to take action.

What students demanded at the protests

Although the protesters called their actions peaceful, they made serious statements. Some of the slogans that the students shouted, for example, “From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free,” are banned as propaganda in various countries. In addition, most of the protesters were radical and behaved quite aggressively.

In general, the pro-Palestinian protesters demanded:

• Columbia University's refusal to invest in any companies that they believe are “profiting from the Palestinian occupation”,
• the university's financial investments must be ” transparent”,
• students and staff who were “disciplined or fired” during pro-Palestinian protests should receive amnesty.

However, it was not possible to reach a compromise. The protesters and the administration of Columbia University could not come to an agreement, so the police had to be involved, because the protests interfered with the educational process.