Hundreds of US university students arrested as Gaza war protests intensify

Hundreds of students have been arrested across universities in the United States as protesters continue to demand a ceasefire in Gaza and divestment from companies enabling Israel’s nearly seven-month war on the Palestinian enclave, reports Al Jazeera.

Police were out in full force on college campuses on Saturday, some using chemical irritants and Tasers to disperse the students, as more universities witnessed protests against the continued bombing of the Gaza Strip and seeking an end to US military assistance for Israel, according to the report. 

In Boston, police detained about 100 people while clearing a protest camp at Northeastern University, with social media posts showing security forces in riot gear and officers loading tents onto the back of a truck.

In Bloomington, in the Midwest, the Indiana University Police Department arrested 23 people as they cleared a campus protest camp, Al Jazeera reported citing the Indiana Daily Student newspaper.

On the opposite side of the country, the Arizona State University Police Department arrested 69 people for trespassing after the group set up an “unauthorised encampment” on campus.

Across the US, university leaders have tried, and largely failed, to quell the demonstrations, which often saw the police intervening violently, with videos emerging from different states showing hundreds of students – and even faculty members – being forcefully arrested, the report says. 

The protesters have demanded amnesty for students and faculty members disciplined or fired for protesting, according to the report.

About a week ago at Columbia University in New York, more than 100 pro-Palestinian activists were arrested.

What started at the Columbia campus has turned into a nationwide showdown between students and administrators over pro-Palestine protests and the restrictions on free speech, the Al Jazeera report says. 

In the past 10 days, hundreds of students have been arrested, suspended, put on probation, and, in rare cases, expelled from colleges, including Yale University, the University of Southern California, Vanderbilt University, and the University of Minnesota.

A few universities had to cancel graduation ceremonies, while others have seen their buildings occupied by the protesters, according to the report.