Israel Palestine Conflict: Large-scale demonstrations against Israel’s war in Gaza spread to several US university campuses on Wednesday, following police crackdowns that resulted in numerous arrests. At least five universities have now been affected by the uproar that was first concentrated at Columbia University, including Harvard and Yale, two Ivy League institutions.
Police Crackdown at University of Texas in Austin
At the University of Texas in Austin, up to 34 students were taken into custody following the arrival of 100 state troopers and a few residents at the area. Videos showed police using their batons to seize control of the situation during the arrest of a Palestinian student organizer at the University of Southern California. Days after Harvard limited admission to Harvard ID holders solely to the Yard, the university’s oldest campus, pro-Palestinian demonstrators descended upon the campus to establish makeshift camps.
Protesters Demand University of Texas Cut Ties with Weaponry Suppliers to Israel
Protesters on the Austin campus of the University of Texas made a demand that the university cut ties with companies that provide Israel with weaponry in its continuing conflict with Gaza. Around 200 students had gathered before midday after the commotion started at a gym, according to The Independent.
The Texas Tribune claims that the university’s Palestinian Solidarity Committee coordinated the demonstration. The UT Division of Student Affairs released a statement claiming that the protest was not supported by the University of Texas, and about 100 state troopers arrived to put an end to the rallies.
USC Campus Descends into Chaos as Protest Turns Violent
Around a hundred students decorated the heart of the University of Southern California (USC) campus with banners, placards, and tents. There, a protest descended into chaos as students and USC Department of Public Safety personnel brawled. Afterwards, backup was requested from the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD).
After the Los Angeles Police Department arrived on the University of Southern California campus and saw about 300 protestors, the school was closed to everyone without a university ID, according to The Independent.
Protesters Occupy Harvard Yard Over Committee Suspension
As part of a “emergency rally” protesting the university’s suspension of the Harvard Undergraduate Palestine Solidarity Committee, hundreds of students stormed Harvard University’s Yard campus and set up tents, according to The New York Times. This happened when the university made the Yard exclusively accessible to faculty and others with valid Harvard IDs.
Demands for President’s Resignation Amid Columbia University Protest
Even though the Ivy League university consented to 48 more hours of talks to put a stop to the pandemonium, Columbia University students jeered US House Speaker Mike Johnson when he visited the epicenter of the nationwide protest on Wednesday.
Speaking on the steps of the library, he was greeted with jeers and received little attention from the students in the neighboring encampments. Mike Johnson demanded that Minouche Shafik, the president of Columbia University, step down in response to her “failure” to safeguard Jewish students, who allegedly informed US House Speaker that they felt frightened. On the other hand, cries of “we can’t hear you” greeted his speech.
Netanyahu Urges Strong Condemnation of US Pro-Palestine Demonstrations
US university pro-Palestine demonstrations were dubbed “horrific” by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who also stated that “more has to be done” to put an end to them. He demanded that the demonstrations be “condemned unequivocally” and said that “antisemitic mobs” were taking over prestigious American institutions.
Pro-Palestine Demonstrations Spread to University Campuses Nationwide
Additional demonstrations took place at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, California State Polytechnic in Humboldt, Brown University, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge.
Meanwhile, the White House has denounced the demonstrations, calling it “despicable” to mimic the “rhetoric of terrorist organizations” in the wake of the “worst massacre committed against the Jewish people since the Holocaust.”
