First appearance on Fox: Former President Trump condemned the violent anti-Israel protests that erupted on college campuses overnight, telling Fox News Digital that the university’s “weak and ineffective leadership” should be “replaced” immediately. He also declared that anti-Semitism “must be stopped quickly and effectively.”
The former president and potential Republican presidential nominee was responding to unrest on college campuses across the country, from UCLA to Tulane University to Columbia University to the University of Arizona.
Pro-Palestinian activists clashed with pro-Israel students on the UCLA campus overnight, with local authorities warning students that the campus was “out of control” and “no longer safe.”
At UCLA, police in riot gear arrived shortly after 1 a.m. and took control of the campus amid hours of violence between anti-Israel and pro-Israel counterprotesters.
President Trump slams Columbia agitators, compares campus anti-Israel riots, calls Charlottesville ‘peanuts’
NEW YORK, USA – APRIL 30: New York City Police Department officers enter the Columbia University building and arrest pro-Palestinian protesters who had barricaded themselves in the iconic Hamilton Hall building in New York, USA, on April 30, 2024. do. More than 100 people were reportedly arrested. (Photo credit: Selcuk Acar/Anadolu via Getty Images)
“This violence must stop immediately,” President Trump told Fox News Digital early Wednesday morning. “The university’s weak and ineffective leadership must be replaced immediately,” he said.
Universities crack down on anti-Israel agitators as protesters seek ‘amnesty’
“We cannot allow anti-Semitism to fester,” Trump said. “It must be stopped quickly and effectively.”
Students have been arrested at Columbia University, City University of New York, Tulane University, and the University of Arizona. Police sprayed gas, fired rubber bullets and clashed with protesters at an encampment in Arizona. State troopers were seen on campus with pepperball guns and gas masks.
Columbia University locks down campus buildings ‘immediately’ after overnight riot
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 30: At a fence during a demonstration at the City University of New York (CUNY) as NYPD cracks down on protest camps at both Columbia University and CCNY on April 30, 2024 in New York. Pro-Palestinian supporters climb the city. Police heavily surrounded both campuses on Tuesday as local police tried to quell encampments of pro-Palestinian protesters. In response to recent campus unrest, classes at both schools have been moved virtually to online learning. (Spencer Pratt/Getty Images)
Anti-Israel demonstrations at UCLA erupted overnight with violence, including fights, the throwing of objects and pepper spray.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – APRIL 30: Pro-Palestinian demonstrators at City University of New York (CUNY) as NYPD cracks down on protest camps at both Columbia University and CCNY on April 30, 2024 in New York City. was arrested by the police. A police presence surrounded both campuses on Tuesday as local police cleared tent encampments set up by pro-Palestinian protesters. In response to recent unrest on campus, classes at both schools have been moved virtually to online learning. (Spencer Pratt/Getty Images)
During the protest, demonstrators fired pepper spray cans and objects were thrown, Fox 11 reported. A police expert told the media that it appeared “professional agitators” were at the scene. Fireworks were also thrown during the protests.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the violence on the UCLA campus was “absolutely abhorrent and unacceptable.”
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In New York, New York City police officers went beyond arrest to restore an American flag on the campus of the City University of New York after it was replaced by a Palestinian flag by anti-Israel agitators during protests.
