Police arrested dozens of people in Encampment for pro-Palestinian protests On Friday, it was broken up at the University of Pennsylvania and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, hours after police tear gassed protesters and took control of a similar camp at the University of Arizona.
Police from Philadelphia and Penn State took action around dawn to remove protesters from an encampment that had been set up for more than two weeks. School officials said the protesters were given a warning and an opportunity to leave the school without being detained. According to the school, about 33 people, including seven staff members and students, were arrested and charged with trespassing.
What you need to know about student movements
Protest camps have sprung up across the United States. Europe In recent weeks, students have made demands on universities. quit business with companies that support Israel or its war effort. Organizers are trying to amplify calls for an end to Israel's war against Hamas in the Gaza Strip, which they say is a genocide against Palestinians.of The United Nations Supreme Court has concluded There is a “plausible risk of genocide” in Gaza, a claim Israel vehemently denies.
In Cambridge, Massachusetts, police in riot gear arrived at MIT around 4 a.m. and surrounded the camp, giving demonstrators about 15 minutes to leave. The remaining 10 students were arrested, the university's president said. A crowd outside the camp began shouting pro-Palestinian slogans, but quickly dispersed.
At the University of Arizona in Tucson, campus police in riot gear fired tear gas at protesters and later set up a camp surrounded by wood and plastic fencing late Thursday, the day before the university's main graduation ceremony. Destroyed. Police vehicles were spiked and rocks and water bottles were thrown at officers and university staff, the school said. According to a university spokesperson, two people were arrested. Friday night's graduation ceremony will take place as scheduled, President Robert Robbins said.
Also at New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, police arrested 13 people Thursday night after they refused to leave a damaged and destroyed building. School spokeswoman Amanda Bradford said the charges ranged from trespassing to felonies, including assaulting a security guard. The building, Hadley Hall, was razed and opened Friday.
Protesters at the University of Wisconsin-Madison on Friday permanently cleared their two-week-long encampment in exchange for an opportunity to contact the “decision makers” who control investment at the university by July 1. They agreed not to disrupt this weekend's graduation ceremony. The university agreed to increase support for academics and students affected by the wars in Gaza and Ukraine.
Graduates of Southern California's Pomona College will have to travel 40 miles (65 kilometers) for Sunday's graduation ceremony as administrators seek to avoid their current campsite. The university announced it would provide transportation to the venue, a historic theater in Los Angeles. In April, protesters broke into the administration building and police arrested 20 people.
The protests began almost three weeks ago Columbia University in New York City. Some universities across the country immediately cracked down, while others tolerated the demonstrations. Recently, some people have called the police due to concerns about disruption to campus life and safety.
The Associated Press has documented at least 75 arrests at protests on U.S. campuses since April 18. Nearly 2,900 people were arrested at 57 universities. The numbers are based on reporting from The Associated Press and statements from schools and law enforcement agencies.
The encampment was cleared two weeks later, but demonstrators at George Washington University vowed Friday to continue their protest.
Police arrested 33 people Wednesday as they forced out the first encampment. The next night, a crowd of chanting protesters returned to the university, about five blocks from the White House, and set up tents as a large police force gathered there. After repeated warnings to disperse, protest leaders ended their demonstration around midnight. One person was arrested for throwing water at a police officer.
Massachusetts Institute of Technology's move comes days after police first tried to clear the camp, but protesters climbed over the fence and rampaged through. restore the encampmentwhich includes approximately 12 tents in the heart of Cambridge's campus.
Before clearing the camp, Massachusetts Institute of Technology began suspending dozens of students earlier this week, meaning they will not be able to attend school or graduation ceremonies.
The protesters say they continue to demand that MIT sever ties with the Israeli military. The encampment was closed for several weeks, particularly infuriating Jewish students who had demonstrated nearby.
“This only makes us even stronger. They can't stop the movement,” said Quinn Perrian, an undergraduate student and organizer of the MIT Jewish Ceasefire Movement. “MIT would rather arrest and suspend some students than end their complicity in the genocide taking place in Gaza.”
In a letter confirming Friday's arrest, MIT President Sally Kornbluth said her responsibility is to “ensure that the campus is physically safe and functioning for everyone…and that everyone is “to enable people to express their opinions freely.” Her encampment “made it increasingly impossible to fulfill all these duties,” she wrote.
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Associated Press journalists Christopher L. Keller, Scott Sonner and Scott Bauer contributed to this report.