On Thursday, more than a hundred pro-Palestinian protesters were taken into custody on the Columbia University campus after the university president gave the go-ahead for New York police to clear a camp that students had established to protest Israel's policies in Gaza according to Reuters.
Nemat Minouche Shafik, president of Columbia University, who faced criticism from Republicans the day before at a House of Representatives committee hearing on antisemitism on campus, announced that she had given the go-ahead for police to remove a group of about a dozen tents that demonstrators had set up early on Wednesday.
In a statement, Shafik stated, “Out of an abundance of concern for the safety of Columbia’s campus, I authorised the New York Police Department to begin clearing the encampment.”
According to Shafik, protesters had disregarded the school's rules and regulations prohibiting unapproved protests and had shown no interest in speaking with the administration.
Over 108 arrests were made by police without any violence or injuries, according to New York City Mayor Eric Adams. The arrests were linked to trespassing, according to the police.
Columbia announced the university had begun suspending students who had taken part in the unofficial protest, which involved setting up a tent encampment.
An email from a university representative stated, "We are continuing to identify them and will be sending out formal notifications."
Barnard College, an affiliate of Columbia University, has sent suspension letters to at least three students Isra Hirsi, Maryam Iqbal, and Soph Dinu for their involvement in the encampment, according to the pro-Palestinian advocacy group Institute for Middle East Understanding.
The US Representative Ilhan Omar, whose daughter Hirsi is, had shown her support for demonstrators during Shafik's testimony on Wednesday.
Hirsi declared on social media that "those of us in Gaza solidarity encampment will not be intimidated" following her suspension.
The confrontation, which brings to mind the anti-Vietnam War protests that took place at Columbia University over 50 years ago, is the most recent in a string of protests that have disrupted airports, university campuses, and bridges since the Israeli-Palestinian crisis escalated again on October 7.
Human rights groups have seen an increase in bias and hate towards Jews, Arabs, and Muslims in recent months in addition to the growth of rallies.
Shafik was accused by the congressional committee on Wednesday of not doing enough to safeguard Jewish students on campus, which was in line with the charges made against three other prominent university administrators at a session that shocked the higher education community last year.
She said that Columbia has taken extreme steps against suspected antisemitic perpetrators and that the institution was suffering a "moral crisis" due to antisemitism on campus.
Columbia University protestors have called for a long-term ceasefire in Gaza, an end to US military support for Israel, and a university-wide divestment from companies that benefit from Israel's incursion.
Students for Justice in Palestine, Columbia University Apartheid Divest, and Jewish Voice for Peace were among the student-led organizations that planned the campsite.
Separately, on Thursday, over 500 protestors marched in favour of Asna Tabassum, a Muslim student whose valedictorian address was postponed due to safety concerns, at the University of Southern California.
According to Tabassum and her supporters, the institution was attempting to silence her because she opposed the Israeli attack on Gaza.
Protesters chanted "Shame!" and held placards that said "Let Her Speak" in front of the USC administration.
"It feels really important, especially right now, for the Jewish voice at USC, the anti-Zionist Jewish voice at USC, to be very loud and very present," stated 23-year-old Katya Urban, one of the organizers of the USC Jewish Voice for Peace contingentIsraeli estimates show that the October 7 cross-border strike by Hamas terrorists killed 1,200 people, setting off Israel's assault on Gaza, which has resulted in over 33,000 deaths, according to the Gazan health ministry.
