NYC police storm Columbia University as violent clashes erupt at California University

Hundreds of police officers in riot gear have arrested pro-Palestinian students at Columbia University, after the institution authorities requested that they “clear all individuals” from a campus building and encampments.

New York Police Department (NYPD) officers stormed the academic premises through a large vehicle with an extendable ramp to gain entry to a second-floor window of the Hamilton Hall on Tuesday night, which university officials said was occupied early Tuesday by students protesting against Israel’s war on Gaza.

In honor of the tragic death of Hind Rajab, a six-year-old Palestinian girl was killed in Gaza in February after hours of pleading for help, the Hamilton Hall building was given a new name "Hind's Hall" by the protesting students.

They occupied it following the announcement from the management that it had started the suspension process of students who failed to comply with the initial deadline to disperse.

Officers wearing helmets began entering the building through a window at around 9:30 p.m. (0130 GMT), while additional officers arrived on campus through the main entrance gate on foot.

“We’re clearing it out,” the riot unit police officers shouted commands as they advanced towards the barricaded entrance of the building, with numerous other officers converging on the main protest camp.

Following the incident, law enforcement officials were seen escorting numerous demonstrators, who had their hands restrained with plastic zip ties, to police cars near the entrance of the university campus.

“Free, free, free Palestine!” chanted protesters outside the building, while others yelled, “Let the students go!”

The dispersal of the protest occurred exactly 56 years after law enforcement intervened at Hamilton Hall to halt a demonstration in 1968 led by students protesting against racism and the Vietnam War.

Columbia said it had called the police to campus for the second time in less than two weeks after Hamilton Hall was occupied. The university’s president, Nemat Shafik, has requested the NYPD to maintain a presence on campus through at least May 17 to prevent further encampments or occupations.

"The events on campus last night have left us no choice," Shafik wrote in a letter to the NYPD.

US Presidential candidate for the 2024 elections Jill Stein, who was arrested during an anti-war protest at Washington University, has said that the American police departments are receiving trainings from Israel.

"Many US police departments - including St. Louis' - are being trained by Israel to use military occupation-style tactics against their own communities," Stein said in a post on a social media platform.

Columbia suspends students after warning to clear out protest camp unheeded

Columbia University initiates suspending student protesters for failing to comply with a final warning to disband.

Students and faculty members criticized Shafik for the university's handling of protests against the war in Gaza, saying that pro-Palestinian voices have been suppressed.

A coalition of 21 House Democrats was also behind the crackdown, which joined Republicans in calling on Columbia University to take action against pro-Palestinian demonstrators, which led to the arrest of numerous protesters on Tuesday.

The group urged the university board to either take decisive action or step down, adding bipartisan pressure to the situation.

“The time for negotiation is over; the time for action is now,” the lawmakers said in a letter, dated Monday, demanding the clearing of the encampment of demonstrators.

“If any trustees are unwilling to do this, they should resign so that they can be replaced by individuals who will uphold the university’s legal obligations.”

Protesting students have said that the demonstrations will continue until their demands are met, the most important of which is for the university to divest from Israel.

Meanwhile, Shafik, on Monday released a statement asserting that Columbia will “not divest from Israel”, prompting protesters to occupy a university building early on Tuesday.

Clashes also took place at encampments that pro-Palestinian students had set up at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) campus, between pro-Palestinian protesters and a group of counter-demonstrators.

The UCLA authorities described the events at the university campus as "horrific violence", which took place following the storming of hundreds of New York police officers at Columbia University grounds on Tuesday night.

According to the Daily Bruin student newspaper, individuals advocating for Israel were attempting to dismantle a protest encampment, which led to the clashes.

Karen Bass, mayor of Los Angeles, stated that the police were addressing the California university chancellor's plea for assistance in handling the confrontations on the campus.

Meanwhile, Brown University in Rhode Island, a member institution of the Ivy League, of which Columbia is also a member, reached an agreement with students protesting the war in Gaza that would see them remove their encampment from school campus in exchange for the institution considering divesting from Israel.

The divestment marks the initial significant compromise from a prestigious American university in response to the ongoing student demonstrations that have caused disruptions on campuses nationwide, sparked debate among the public, and resulted in numerous arrests.

Upon receiving the news of the agreement, the student demonstrators leaped with joy and chanted divestment is drawing closer, as they proceeded to dismantle their tents.

"We are ending (the encampment) knowing that we made a huge victory for divestment at Brown, for this international movement and a victory for the people of Palestine," said a Brown student Leo Corzo-Clark.

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