Student protests against Gaza war spread across US Universities
International media have reported that student protests at universities across America against what is perceived as the ongoing Gaza conflict have escalated, with police in several instances storming the gathering places of students on university campuses to quell these protests.
Reuters reported in a dispatch published on Wednesday, April 24th, that student protests in the United States over the Gaza war intensified and spread last week.
According to the report, several protest camps are currently established at colleges, including Columbia, Yale, and the University of New York, to continue demonstrations, and police have been called to several university premises to apprehend demonstrators.
Protesting students at American universities have similar demands, including a permanent ceasefire in Gaza, an end to US military aid to Israel, and amnesty for students and faculty members who have been disciplined or expelled for protesting.
Organizers of these protests say that despite their civil and peaceful approach to these protests, police and, in some cases, university officials have resorted to violence and threats, including suspending students, to suppress these protests.
Reuters also reported on the detention of hundreds of students by police and the suspension of hundreds of students by universities.
According to reports, Columbia University and its affiliated Barnard College suspended dozens of students who participated in the protests. More than 100 protesters were arrested at Columbia, and Yale police arrested over 60 protesters on Monday after giving them “multiple opportunities to leave and avoid arrest.” The New York Police Department also reported the arrest of 120 people late on Monday in New York.
It is noteworthy that these protests have disrupted the ordinary course of activities at some of America’s most prominent universities to the extent that Columbia University has added the option of online teaching for its next semester, and Humboldt, California State Polytechnic University, has cancelled its in-person classes until Wednesday following these protests.
These protests come as the US House of Representatives has approved the country’s plan to equip Israel with military arms.
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