New York police arrested dozens of students of Colombia University, after they occupied a part of the main library, in a large protest against the Gaza War.
Dozens of students of Colombia University, in a large protest against the Gaza PHOTO: X
Dozens of students were arrested on Wednesday by NYPD police at Colombia University, after occupying the main reading room on the Second floor of the Butler Library. The action was part of a series of pro-Palestinian demonstrations reminiscent of the major protests against the Israel War in Gaza.
According to Reuters agency, between 40 and 50 students, with hands handcuffed with plastic ties, they were driven in the police and police buses, while the officers continued to searched the six -storey building to remove the other protesters who refused to leave.
The police intervened at the request of the university management, who claimed that the students had violated the property of the institution. Colombia University announced on Wednesday evening that it has requested the support of the New York police to secure the building, specifying that two members of the public safety team were injured during the intervention.
On the social networks, images with protesters appeared, many of them wearing masks, sitting on the tables, beating in drums and displaying banners such as “Strike for Gaza” and “Liberated Zone” in the reading room Lawrence A. Wein.
The governor of New York, Kathy Hoch, reacted on social networks, stating: “Everyone has the right to protest peacefully. But violence, vandalism or destruction of property are completely unacceptable”.
A police spokesman confirmed that they had taken place “More arrests”but did not offer an exact number.
Before the police intervene, the university's employees blocked access to the library, generating a bus at the entrance. One student would have been injured, and another person was put out on the fair.
Outside the library, more and more protesters gathered and moved to the streets near the campus, after access to the building was restricted.
A student organization involved in protest, Columbia University Apartheid Divest, accused the Security team of the University of Demonstrators. The group also acknowledged that some activists refused to present their identity documents.
The organization posted on the social networks new calls to the management of the university, demanding that the equipment worth $ 14.8 billion will no longer be invested in companies that produce weapons or support the Israeli occupation of Palestinian territories.
US President Donald Trump has previously criticized Columbia University for last year's similar protests, cataloging them as “ANTISEMITIC“And accusing the institution of not succeeding”to protect the Jewish students“. Protestant students, including some Jewish organizers, claim that Trump and other pro-Israel politiciansunjustly confuses pro-Palestinian protests with anti-Semitism. ”
Meanwhile, the university continues to state that they are fighting against anti -Semitism and other forms of hatred, while rejecting the accusations from civil rights organizations, which say that the institution cesters government pressures that affect academic freedom.
