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Police forcibly dispersed numerous defiant pro-Palestinian demonstrators at various colleges on Thursday, including dismantling an encampment at UCLA in a dramatic scene that highlighted the increased turmoil unfolding at universities this week. In the early morning, police in helmets moved in on a tent city established at the University of California, Los Angeles, using flash bangs and riot gear to break through lines of protesters who were linked arm-in-arm in a futile attempt to stop them. The Los Angeles police reported on social media that 210 individuals were arrested at UCLA, with hundreds more arrests made at other universities overnight and into Thursday.
"I'm a student here," one UCLA protester stated to cameras as he was led away with his hands bound. "Please don't fail us. Don't fail us." Hours later, the student, identified only as Ryan, was back on campus and declared that the fight would not stop. "We will return," Ryan, who was cited for unlawful assembly, asserted. "We will disrupt. We will demand divestment."
Students have rallied or erected tents at numerous universities in recent days to protest Israel's actions in Gaza. Demonstrators have urged President Joe Biden, who has expressed support for Israel's right to defend itself, to take more action to halt the violence in Gaza and have demanded that schools divest from companies that support Israel's government.
Many schools, including Columbia University in New York City, have called upon police to quell the protests. Biden addressed the demonstrations on Thursday after the UCLA incident, stating that Americans have the right to protest but not to engage in violence. "Destroying property is not a peaceful protest," he remarked at the White House. "It's against the law. Vandalism, trespassing, breaking windows, shutting down campuses, forcing the cancellation of classes and graduations - none of this constitutes a peaceful protest."
Biden, who is seeking re-election in November against Republican former President Donald Trump, has navigated a delicate path as he faces criticism from both the right and the left over his Israel policy. At UCLA, police repeatedly urged demonstrators to vacate the protest zone, which occupied a central plaza roughly the size of a football field, before moving in. Several loud explosions from stun grenades, fired by police, were heard as demonstrators, some carrying makeshift shields and umbrellas, chanted "push them back" and directed bright lights at officers.
Live television footage depicted officers taking down tents and dismantling makeshift barricades. Some protesters had been seen wearing hard hats, goggles, and respirator masks in anticipation of the police action, which came a day after the university declared the encampment illegal. By morning, the plaza was littered with debris from the destroyed encampment: tents, blankets, food containers, a Palestinian flag, an upturned helmet. Police remained on site during the first half of the day as the area was cleaned.
In Portland, Oregon, police entered the Portland State University library on Thursday morning, where demonstrators had barricaded themselves since Monday. Several dozen protesters ran out of the building and rushed into a line of officers in riot gear, who arrested them. Police made additional arrests at the library on Thursday night as demonstrators attempted to reoccupy it. A university spokesperson described the situation as "very fluid."
In New Hampshire, police arrested approximately 100 protesters in separate incidents at Dartmouth University and the University of New Hampshire overnight, dispersing encampments.
The protests followed the deadly October 7 attack on southern Israel by Hamas militants from the Gaza Strip, which resulted in 1,200 deaths and saw dozens taken hostage, as well as an ensuing Israeli offensive that has resulted in approximately 34,000 deaths and created a humanitarian crisis.
The campus protests have been met with counter-protesters accusing them of promoting anti-Jewish sentiment. The pro-Palestinian contingent, which includes some Jews opposed to Israeli actions in Gaza, argues that they are unfairly labeled as antisemitic for criticizing Israel's government and expressing support for human rights.
UCLA CRACKDOWN FOLLOWED VIOLENT CLASH
UCLA had canceled classes for the day on Wednesday following a violent clash between the encampment's occupants and a group of masked counter-demonstrators who launched a surprise attack late Tuesday night on the tent city.
UCLA Chancellor Gene Block, in a written statement, stated that officials had permitted the encampment to remain on campus for several days as it was initially peaceful, but the clashes with the pro-Israeli crowd had clearly endangered students.
"It led to unsafe conditions on our campus and it damaged our ability to carry out our mission," Block said of the encampment. "It needed to come to an end."
Taylor Gee, a 30-year-old pro-Palestinian protester and UCLA law student, remarked that the police operation on Thursday felt "especially galling" to many protesters given the delayed police response the previous night.
"For them to come out the next night to remove us from the encampment, it doesn't make any sense, but it also makes all the sense in the world," he said.
UCLA officials stated that the campus, with nearly 52,000 students, would remain closed except for limited operations on Thursday and Friday.