Riot police storm Columbia campus and drag pro-Palestine protesters from barricade
Police said the protesters face criminal charges – AFP
Police arrested dozens of Palestine protesters at Columbia University on Tuesday night, ending a two-week protest that sparked copycat demonstrations across the world.
The university’s administration called in the New York Police Department (NYPD) after students barricaded themselves inside a building, in echoes of 20th century protests against the Vietnam War and South African apartheid.
Officials said they had “no choice” but to call in reinforcements after Hamilton Hall, a neoclassical building on the university’s Upper East Side, was occupied by students who were calling for the institution to divest from companies linked to Israel.
Police in riot gear formed up in the streets around the campus shortly before 9pm Eastern Time on Tuesday, staring down demonstrators who had come out in sympathy with the students.
Chanting protesters waved Palestinian flags and compared the officers to the Ku Klux Klan and Israel Defence Forces.
“Oink, oink, piggie, piggie, we’re going to make your life s—ty,’’ the crowd shouted.
Police officers use a ramp on an armored vehicle to enter Hamilton Hall – Stephani Spindel/EPA-EFE
New York police officers at the university with barricaded students behind a closed door – Timothy A. Clary/AFP
The NYPD stormed the campus, accessing Hamilton Hall from a second-floor window and making dozens of arrests.
Officers used flash bang grenades as “distraction devices” as they entered the building, a police spokesman said.
Students had their hands bound with cable ties and were led away onto buses, with some shouting “Free Palestine” as they were detained.
In a statement, Columbia said that the demonstrators “have chosen to escalate the situation through their actions”.
“After the University learned overnight that Hamilton Hall had been occupied, vandalised, and blockaded, we were left with no choice,” said Ben Chang, a spokesman.
The university also released a letter from Baroness Shafik, the university’s president, to the NYPD requesting assistance earlier on Tuesday and asking that officers stay on the campus until May 17, after a planned graduation ceremony later this month.
“Columbia is committed to allowing members of our community to engage in political expression – within established rules and with respect for the safety of all.” she wrote.
“The policies we have in place around demonstrations are in place to support both the right to expression and the safety and functioning of our University.”
Furniture is seen piled up after police cleared the building – Ben Change/Columbia University/Reuters
Windows were smashed by protesters – Ben Chang/Columbia University/Reuters
The protests have spread to more than two dozen US states, and to campuses in Britain, France and Canada. Students in other universities have copied the “encampment” style of protest by erecting tents in prominent university locations.
Some faculty members criticised Baroness Shafik’s decision to involve the police.
Tom Slater, a Professor of Urban Studies at the university, said: “Her actions are beyond despicable. She has no support from anyone other than her inner circle.”
Tuesday’s police action at Columbia comes exactly 56 years after officers swept into Hamilton Hall to arrest protesters occupying the building in 1968. The more than 700 students taken into custody on that day had taken over the hall and other campus buildings for a week to protest racism and the Vietnam War.
Joe Biden, the US President, did not comment following the arrests on Tuesday night. Earlier in the day, he warned the students against “tragic and dangerous hate speech’’ as he described their occupation of the university building as “wrong”.
Donald Trump, meanwhile, seized the chance to turn the media spotlight on “Biden’s campus chaos” and away from his hush money trial after he was told on Tuesday he could be jailed if he continued to violate a gag order.
In stark contrast to rhetoric on the day his supporters stormed the US Capitol, the former president said the NYPD should have taken action before the students “took over” a building.
“It should never have gotten to this and they should have done it a lot sooner than before they took over the building,’’ Mr Trump told Fox News.
“It would have been a lot easier if they were in tents.”
Mr Trump also said on Tuesday that he would “absolutely” consider pardoning the hundreds of rioters who took over the Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Asked about the possibility of violence if he loses in November, Mr Trump replied: “It always depends on the fairness of the election.”
05:24 AM BST
The live blog is now closed
That’s the end of our live coverage. We’ll update you again on the pro-Palestine protests at Columbia University later on Wednesday.
In the meantime, read the latest news and expert analysis:
04:20 AM BST
What happens now?
On paper, the protesters’s demands are relatively mundane. In light of the conflict in Gaza, and Israel’s continued bombardment of Palestinian villages, the students asked that Columbia sell off its investments in Israeli companies, declare its shareholdings and cancel a planned “global centre” in Tel Aviv. Baroness Shafik, Columbia’s president, refused those demands on Monday and, as a result, the students decided to escalate their demonstration. The university had little choice but to call in police – but acting to remove students may only embolden a cause that has swept the US…
04:09 AM BST
Protesters face criminal charges
Kaz Daughtry, the NYPD’s Deputy Commissioner of Operations, said before police moved in that the protesters inside Hamilton Hall may be charged with “burglary in the third degree, criminal mischief and trespassing”.
Those at the encampment could be charged with “trespassing and disorderly conduct”, she said.
The protesters also face sanctions from Columbia itself. Those on the West Lawn face suspension, while the students who broke in to Hamilton Hall on Monday night face expulsion, a spokesman said earlier on Tuesday.
03:49 AM BST
Protesters are not deterred
As the Columbia sit-in appeared to be concluding, one protester in a keffiyah sounded a note of dejection but said the police action was merely a setback.
‘‘It always ends this way because there are more police than us,’’ the young woman said.
Asked if taking over the hall was a step too far, she said: “Nothing is too far in the face of a genocide.”
But it has been a feature if the anti-Israel pro-Palestinian protests to date that many do not wish to comment unless they have been “ media-trained”.
Another protestor said she was not disappointed by the outcome. “Liberation is coming,” she said. “ You can quote me on that. Hell yeah.”
A NYPD officer remarked that he anticipated a long night on duty.
“They’re young and full of vigour so I don’t think they’re going home anytime soon,” he said and chuckled.
03:46 AM BST
Trump capitalises on ‘Biden’s campus chaos’
Donald Trump has released an attack advert criticising Joe Biden over the campus protests unfolding at US universities.
A post on his Truth Social platform shows videos of protesters chanting “we are all Hamas” and smashing up university property.
The video also includes some of Mr Biden’s comments on the protesters, selectively edited to give the impression he supports them.
“They have a point,” he says in one clip. In another, he says: “I don’t resent their passion.”
In reality, Mr Biden has been strongly critical of the protesters, and on Tuesday accused them of “hate speech”. But this video shows that Mr Trump is intending to make the protests an election issue:
03:43 AM BST
Pictures: NYPD loads protesters on to buses
Columbia protests
Columbia protester
Columbia protesters
03:34 AM BST
‘Many bus loads’ of students arrested
Police are yet to confirm how many people have been arrested. But a video shared by Tom Slater, a Columbia professor, suggests dozens of students were taken away by police.
Prof Slater shared footage of a bus pulling away from the university campus. The bus contained students who had been arrested, he said, adding that it was was “one of many”.
03:30 AM BST
NYPD used ‘flash bang grenades’ but deny using tear gas
The NYPD used flash bang grenades this evening to distract the protesters, but has denied using tear gas to suppress the demonstrations on Columbia’s campus and outside the gates.
CNN reported comments from an NYPD spokesman describing the use of “distraction devices,” including flash bangs and other methods. The spokesman would not confirm the number of people who have been arrested.
Flash bang grenades are hand-thrown devices which upon detonation deliver a bright flash and loud noise. They are non-lethal but have caused injuries when police used them to control crowds during past protests.
03:04 AM BST
British-American peer wrote to NYPD
Columbia has released a letter sent to the NYPD on Tuesday from Baroness Shafik, the British-American peer who is president of the university.
In the two-page letter, she described the break-in at Hamilton Hall, and the continued encampment on the University’s West Lawn.
“The takeover of Hamilton Hall and the continued encampments raise serious safety concerns for the individuals involved and the entire community,” Baroness Shafik wrote.
“The actions of these individuals are unfortunately escalating. These activities have become a magnet for protesters outside our gates which creates significant risk to our campus and disrupts the ability of the University to continue normal operations.
“The events on campus last night have left us no choice. With the support of the University’s Trustees, I have determined that the building occupation, the encampments, and related disruptions pose a clear and present danger to persons, property, and the substantial functioning of the University and require the use of emergency authority to protect persons and property.”
She wrote that it was “with the utmost regret” that the university was requesting “help to clear all individuals from Hamilton Hall and all campus encampments”.
“As part of this process, we understand that the NYPD plans to use its LRAD technology to inform participants in the encampments that they must disperse,” the Baroness wrote, referring to Long-Range Acoustic Devices which are ‘sonic weapons’ police use for crowd control.
02:59 AM BST
Columbia ‘had no choice’ but to call police
A new statement from Columbia, just released, says that the university had “no choice” but to call the NYPD to remove protesters after Hamilton Hall was “occupied, vandalised and blockaded”.
Ben Chang, a Columbia spokesman, said: “The leadership team, including the Board of Trustees, met throughout the night and into the early morning, consulting with security experts and law enforcement to determine the best plan to protect our students and the entire Columbia community.
“We made the decision, early in the morning, that this was a law enforcement matter, and that the NYPD were best positioned to determine and execute an appropriate response.”
He added that the protesters had created an “alarming and untenable situation” and that “the decision to reach out to the NYPD was in response to the actions of the protesters, not the cause they are championing”.
“We have made it clear that the life of campus cannot be endlessly interrupted by protesters who violate the rules and the law,” he said.
02:58 AM BST
Students arrested
Students have been led away from the campus with their hands bound by zip ties, The New York Times reported.
They have been loaded onto a law enforcement bus outside of the campus and driven away by police.
As they were dragged away, some protesters shouted: “Free Palestine!”
A NYPD officer arrests a student – TIMOTHY A. CLARY/Getty
02:56 AM BST
Chanting protesters compare IDF to Ku Klux Klan
02:45 AM BST
Haley calls for ‘law and order’
Nikki Haley, the Republican presidential candidate, has called for “law and order” to be restored to campuses after the NYPD swooped on protesters at Columbia.
She said “anyone breaking the law should be arrested”.
02:42 AM BST
NYPD enter Hamilton Hall via window
The NYPD has entered Hamilton Hall via a second floor window after students locked the front doors and barricaded themselves inside.
Live footage from the scene shows officers breaking into the second floor window using a bridge.
The doors to the front of the building – which protesters say they have renamed in honour of a six-year-old killed in Gaza – have been locked since Tuesday morning.
02:37 AM BST
Police are trying to control two protests at once
There are two protests going on at Columbia this evening. One is the student demonstration that has been going on for almost two weeks, and is split between a sit-in at Hamilton Hall and an encampment on the West Lawn.
The other, on Amsterdam Avenue, is between police and members of the public. The student protests have inspired a copycat demonstration outside of the university gates, which non-students are not allowed to cross.
This is a major police operation, and will be scrutinised endlessly by critics of Columbia, who have previously condemned the administration for involving the NYPD.
02:33 AM BST
Stand-off on Amsterdam Avenue
It’s a stand-off now. A group of perhaps 100 students have been pushed up Amsterdam Avenue by a slow moving wave of police.
The police, designated the crowd-control SRG, stand impassively, their visors down on their helmets, batons in hand.
The chanting continues: “Free Palestine, quit your job! Why are you in riot gear, there is no riot here!”
Another shouts: “Oink, oink, piggie, piggie, we’re going to make your life s—ty.”
Pro-Palestine protesters link arms – REUTERS
02:14 AM BST
Shouts of ‘NYPD, KKK’
Police have now moved us up the street.
Protestors are 100 feet apart. They are attempting to run toward the police line, refusing to move from outside Hamilton Hall.
“Quit your job,” they shout at police. “NYPD, KKK.”
Police are moving on protests at Columbia – EDWARD HELMORE
02:08 AM BST
Police move in
The police are moving up Amsterdam Avenue. A recorded message played by police said: “You are unlawfully obstructing pedestrian traffic. You are ordered to disperse now. If you do so voluntarily, no charges will be placed against you. If you refuse to disperse you will be charged with disorderly conduct.”
02:08 AM BST
Chanting students pledge to ‘observe but not engage’
As the campus was encircled by New York police, chanting students outside a dark Hamilton Hall said they would not attempt to resist police if they move. “Observe but not engage,” said one.
Another, who had been suspended in the initial camp sweep ten days ago, said she planned to “get out if the way.”
“I can’t afford to be suspended again “, she added.
But most said they had no plan and returned to now familiar chant: “We will not stop, we will not rest, disclose, divest.”
02:05 AM BST
University staff ‘sent shelter in place alerts’
Joseph Howley, a classics academic at Columbia, said that staff had been sent “shelter in place” alerts on their mobile phones because of disturbances at Columbia this evening.
02:05 AM BST
Columbia academics blame ‘university leadership’ for chaos on campus
A group of university academics have issued a statement blaming Columbia’s president, a British-American peer, and the university board for the chaos this evening.
Members of the American Association of University Professors issued a statement shortly before 8.30pm Eastern Time, warning that the “NYPD is massing on barricaded streets outside the gates of Columbia University”.
“NYPD presence in our neighbourhood endangers our entire community,” the statement said. “Armed police entering our campus places students and everyone else on campus at risk.
“That is why University statutes require consultation with faculty – statutes which appear to have been ignored since April 17, and again tonight.
“We hold University leadership responsible for the disastrous lapses of judgment that have gotten us to this point. The University President, her senior staff, and the Board of Trustees will bear responsibility for any injuries that may occur during any police action on our campus.”
02:04 AM BST
Student leader mocked for asking for food
A student leader was mocked after she claimed that protesters in the Hamilton Hall building needed “humanitarian aid” because they had run out of food less than 24 hours into their sit-in protest.
In an exchange with reporters, the student called on the university to allow food deliveries into the building to support the protesters, pointing out that they had paid for a “meal plan” from the university.
She claimed that the protesters, who have been asked to leave the building, needed “humanitarian aid” including “a glass of water”.
01:57 AM BST
Hundreds of officers outside Columbia
Hundreds of NYPD officers have gathered outside Columbia University before an expected swoop on protesters on the campus.
Here are the latest images from the scene:
Police at Columbia
Police at Columbia
Police at Columbia
Play The Telegraph’s brilliant range of Puzzles – and feel brighter every day. Train your brain and boost your mood with PlusWord, the Mini Crossword, the fearsome Killer Sudoku and even the classic Cryptic Crossword.