Live updates: Tensions mounting at UCLA; arrests made at Fordham as college protests spread

Hundreds of protesters at the University of California at Los Angeles are packed against their encampment barricades, facing police in helmets and face shields standing shoulder to shoulder on the other side, as police action against protesters spreads across the country. Officers were summoned to clear protesters at the University of Texas at Dallas and University of Wisconsin at Madison, and at Fordham University, New York police arrested 15 protesters Wednesday after they set up an indoor encampment.

Here’s what to know:

• University of California Chancellor Gene Block said administrators will investigate an outbreak of violence at UCLA on Wednesday after counterprotesters attacked the encampment’s barricade, which he said could lead to arrests or expulsions.
• Columbia University said all exams and academic activities will be remote for the rest of the semester following a massive overnight police operation to clear a building occupied by protesters and encampment.
• So far, more than 1,700 people have been arrested on campuses nationwide, according to a count kept by The Washington Post.
• The University of Vermont will disclose a list of its investments this week, school spokesman Adam White told The Washington Post — a rare victory for pro-Palestinian protesters who have called for universities to disclose and divest from businesses with ties to Israel.

1:31 AM: Tensions mounting at UCLA as protesters face police

Hundreds of protesters at UCLA are packed against the barricades surrounding their encampment, chanting “Free Palestine,” as police wearing helmets and face shields stand shoulder to shoulder on the other side.

The scene remained tense but peaceful late Wednesday local time. Some protesters taunted private security personnel and yelled at them to go home.

A day before, masked men had attacked the pro-Palestinian encampment on the campus, leading students to criticize police for not intervening sooner. Fifteen injuries, including a hospitalization, were reported after officers quelled the violence.

UCLA Chancellor Gene Block denounced the attackers in a statement earlier Wednesday, promising to investigate the incident.

By: Yvonne Condes and Niha Masih

1:18 AM: Police arrest 17 at the University of Texas at Dallas

Live updates: Tensions mounting at UCLA; arrests made at Fordham as college protests spread

Police at the University of Texas at Dallas late Wednesday cleared an encampment that had been erected that morning, charging 17 protesters with criminal trespass, the university said.

University spokeswoman Kim Horner said school officials instructed demonstrators in writing to remove their tents. The university “requested assistance from outside law enforcement” after protesters on the Richardson, Tex., campus refused to comply, she said.

“Individuals may peacefully assemble in the common outdoor areas of campus to exercise their right to free speech, but they may not construct an encampment or block pathways,” Horner said in a statement. “In the last six months, there have been several peaceful protests on the UT Dallas campus.”

By: Molly Hennessy-Fiske

1:18 AM: After weeks of college protests, police responses ramp up

Staffers unfurled a tarp to block protesters from watching police sweeping a pro-Palestinian encampment at Fordham University in New York on Wednesday.

Colleges and universities reckoned Wednesday with the aftermath of major shows of police force across the country that cleared some protest encampments and emptied a Manhattan classroom building in a turning point following two weeks of contagious pro-Palestinian demonstrations.

Even after a fragile calm resettled over campuses that have seen the bulk of the chaos, footage of officers in riot gear extracting students from Columbia University’s Hamilton Hall — the most searing images from 24 hours of tense confrontations between law enforcement and protesters — sparked debates nationwide as Americans struggled to make sense of it all.

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By: Danielle Paquette, Hannah Natanson, Joanna Slater and Emily Wax-Thibodeaux