NYC police storm Columbia University as violent clashes erupt at California University- Video
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.
