Pro-Palestinian demonstrators at Columbia University have been given an ultimatum to abandon their camp or risk suspension after talks aimed at voluntary removal of the camp collapsed.
The ultimatum, with a deadline of 2pm on Monday, was issued after the university’s president, Minoush Shafiq, announced that efforts to reach a compromise with protest organizers had failed. She insisted that the agency would not bow to demands to withdraw from Israel.
“It is important that you know that the University has already identified a number of students who are in encampments,” the letter, written on university stationery and headed “Notification of Encampments,” reads. was. “If you do not leave by 2 p.m., you will be suspended pending further investigation.”
Additionally, “If you voluntarily withdraw by 2:00 p.m., you pledge to identify yourself to university officials and abide by all university policies until June 30, 2025 or the date of degree conferral, whichever occurs first.” Please sign the prescribed form,” it added. You will be eligible to complete the semester in good standing early. ”
Columbia University’s New York campus has become the epicenter of university protests across the country against Israel’s six-month war in Gaza. The war has killed more than 34,000 Palestinians and displaced hundreds of thousands more, displacing coastal areas. To the brink of starvation.
The demonstration sparked allegations of anti-Semitism, with Jewish students reporting being threatened and vilified.
In response, protesters claimed that anti-Semitism charges were being increased to silence criticism of Israel.
Shafik, who faced a difficult cross-examination by a parliamentary committee this month over allegations of anti-Semitism on campus, said in an emailed statement to staff and students that a tented protest in the center of campus He said the activist community is “creating an unwelcoming environment for students.” Many of our students and faculty are Jewish. ”
“I know that many Jewish students and other students have found the atmosphere of the past few weeks unbearable. Many have left campus, which is a tragedy,” she said. and placed much of the blame on “external parties.”
He said discussions broke down as the university sought a “collaborative solution” that would lead to the encampment’s removal.
She said the university rejected calls to withdraw from Israel but offered to invest in health and education in the Gaza Strip.
More than 100 demonstrators were arrested on Columbia University’s campus on April 18 after police were called out, and Shafiq was criticized by many student body members and some faculty members who saw this as a suppression of free speech. criticism has increased.
Protests spread nationwide, and about 900 protesters, including university teachers, were arrested on campuses across the country.
About 275 arrests were recorded on Saturday alone at various campuses, including Indiana University Bloomington, Arizona State University and Washington University in St. Louis.
The University of Washington said in a statement that more than 100 people, including 23 students and four university employees, were illegally attacked after police attempted to remove masked protesters and there were reports of some carrying weapons to evade arrest. It was announced that he was arrested on suspicion of trespassing.
In Virginia, unspecified arrests occurred at Virginia Tech University in Blacksburg over the weekend after protesters began occupying the lawn outside the Graduate Life Center.
About 100 protesters were arrested Saturday at Northwestern University in Boston. Elsewhere in Massachusetts, authorities at Tufts University in Boston said they would reach out to protest leaders to reach an agreement to clear campus encampments in the coming days; The university said it would not begin disciplinary proceedings against the 100 students who were arrested. Last week’s protests were similar, and will likely deter prosecutors from rushing to file charges.
On Monday, protesters near George Washington University in Washington, D.C., reportedly broke through and removed a fence that was erected last week to prevent people from occupying the university’s grounds.
