More than 100 protesters gathered on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin on Wednesday to take part in an unruly anti-Israel demonstration.
The noisy protest drew hundreds of onlookers, some of whom joined in anti-Israel chants on the school’s south lawn. The University of Texas at Austin is one of a number of U.S. universities where anti-Israel protests have intensified in recent days as Israel’s military continues its war with Hamas in the Middle East.
The Austin Police Department (APD) and the Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) were seen making the arrest. Some police officers monitored the protests on horseback.
“APD, KKK, IDF/They’re all the same,” the group could be heard shouting.
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At least 20 people were arrested at an anti-Israel protest at the University of Texas at Austin on Wednesday. (Brian Preston/FOX News Digital)
Protesters also chanted, “Pigs go home!” to Texas law enforcement officers at the scene. Protesters wearing keffiyehs tried to set up some tents, but were quickly stopped by police.
DPS later told FOX News Digital that more than 20 people had been arrested. The department said the arrests were made “to assist the UT Police in maintaining public order by preventing illegal assembly and arresting those involved in all types of criminal activities, including trespassing.”
In X, Republican Governor Greg Abbott denounced the protests as lawless and anti-Semitic.
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Protesters set up tents on the campus of the University of Texas at Austin, but law enforcement quickly intervened. (Brian Preston/FOX News Digital)
“These protesters should be in jail,” Abbott wrote. “Anti-Semitism will not be tolerated in Texas. Of course.”
“Students who participate in hateful, anti-Semitic protests at Texas public universities should be expelled.”
UT Austin told FOX News Digital it “does not tolerate” destructive protests.
About 100 protesters gathered at UT Austin, a fraction of the student body. (Brian Preston/FOX News Digital)
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“UT Austin will not tolerate disruptions to campus activities and operations like those seen at other campuses,” the statement said. “This is a critical time in the semester when students finish classes and study for final exams, and we will first and foremost act to ensure that these important events can proceed without interruption. ”
