Columbia University applies the first sanctions to pro-Palestinian students who do not leave the camp set up on campus

Columbia University in New York, where the pro-Palestinian movement started on campuses in the United States, began to sanction with administrative suspension the students who refuse to leave the camp installed ten days ago.

This new wave of movement of students and activists against the war that Israel has been waging in the Gaza Strip for more than six months has included many universities, from California (west) to New England (northeast) and to the center and south of America.

“We started suspending (administratively) students in this new phase, to ensure the security of our campus,” the vice president in charge of communication at Columbia University, Ben Chang, told the media on Monday, reports AFP, taken by News.ro.

After a relatively calm weekend on this campus, where a “village” of tents was installed, the president of Columbia University Minouche Shafik launched an ultimatum on Monday that expired.

She urged the 200 people in the camp to leave, after five days of negotiations for an amicable solution failed.

These pro-Palestinian students and activists, who are demanding that Columbia University, a private university, sever ties with its patron or with businesses that have ties to Israel, have called for “protecting the camp” as the ultimatum expires.

“We will only be kicked out by force”, shouted Sueda Polat, one of the student leaders of the movement, in a press conference, denouncing “an intimidation tactic that means nothing compared to the death of over 34,000 Palestinians”.

Dozens of young people marched, with their faces protected by sanitary masks, in the campus, applauded and chanted “Free Palestine!”, according to an AFP journalist who counted about 50 people remaining in the small camp where there was a relaxed atmosphere, without the presence of the police .

Columbia University gave assurances on Friday that it is not asking the New York Police (NYPD) to evacuate the tents. But a professor from Columbia, Joseph Howley, believes that the ultimatum given by President Shafik means “giving in to external political pressure”.

The wave of protests spread to American universities

The movement started from Columbia University, where on April 18, 100 people were arrested.

After that, hundreds of other students, professors and activists were briefly arrested, and in some cases sued, at several American universities.

Images of riot police intervening on campuses at the behest of universities have gone around the world and are reminiscent of similar events that took place in the United States during the Vietnam War.

These demonstrations have reignited a tense debate over the October 7 attack on freedom of expression, a constitutional right, and accusations of anti-Semitism.

This winter, the presidents of Harvard and UPenn universities resigned after being accused in Congress in Washington of not doing enough against anti-Semitism.

On the one hand, students and professors accuse their universities of censoring free political expression, and on the other hand, several personalities, including elected Republicans, believe that the demonstrators are stirring up anti-Semitism. But Jewish students also joined the pro-Palestinian mobilizations.

“Many of our Jewish students and others feel in these last weeks an intolerable atmosphere. Many have left the campus and it is a tragedy”, stated the president of Columbia University in her statement.

Minouche Shafik announced that the university will not break its ties with Israel.

American politicians denounce anti-Semitism

But House Republican leader Mike Johnson denounced X as a “campus overrun by anti-Semitic students” and asked Shafik to resign.

On Sunday, the White House asked the pro-Palestinian demonstrations to remain “peaceful” and condemned the “anti-Semitic statements”.

The spokeswoman of the American presidency, Karine Jean-Pierre, reminded on Monday that “freedom of expression must take place within the framework of the law and the right”.

Over the weekend, more than 350 people were arrested in many universities in America, and the camp at Boston University was disbanded.

And at the University of Texas, in Austin, a camp was dissolved, and several people were arrested.

On Monday, the police used tear gas against the demonstrators.

“No camp will be authorized,” announced the conservative governor of Texas, Greg Abbott, on social media.

Lawyer Paul Quinzi, who defends the arrested persons in Austin, told AFP that he estimates the number of arrests to be “less than 80”, which “continues”.

The war in the Gaza Strip was triggered by an unprecedented attack, on October 7, in the south of Israel by Hamas commandos, which resulted in the death of 1,170 people, the majority of them civilians, according to a balance sheet compiled by AFP based on official Israeli data.

Israel has announced retaliation, and the vast Israeli military operation in the Gaza Strip has resulted in 34,488 deaths, mostly civilians, according to Hamas.

Publisher: MI

Download the Digi24 app and find out the most important news of the day