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College protests live: NYPD reveals cop ‘unintentionally’ fired gun while breaching locked office at Columbia

President Joe Biden condemned protests that turned violent on college campuses on Thursday

President Joe Biden insists ‘order must prevail’ as police shut down college Gaza protests

The NYPD revealed on Friday morning that a police officer with the department’s Emergency Service Unit “unintentionally” fired his gun while trying to access a locked office at Columbia University on Tuesday night.

The bullet hit a wall inside the office. No one was injured.

Police in Portland cleared students out of the Portland State University library, which suffered significant damage over the course of a four-day occupation by students.

No one was injured, according to spokesperson Doug Cohen, who said there were other officers but no students in the immediate vicinity. He said Bragg’s office is conducting a review.

He did not provide additional details on the incident, which was first reported by news outlet The City.

On Thursday morning, hundreds of police officers dismantled a pro-Palestinian protest camp at the University of California at Los Angeles and arrested more than 130 demonstrators.

Live TV footage showed protesters under arrest, kneeling on the ground, their hands bound behind their backs with zip ties. Loud explosions were heard during the clash from flash-bang charges, or stun grenades, fired by police.

President Joe Biden also denounced protests that turned violent on college campuses on Thursday.

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Graduating seniors blame USC for ruining end of college with ‘military’ crackdown

Seniors say ‘military’ crackdown on USC pro-Palestine protests has ruined final weeks

The university in Los Angeles has seen protests dispersed by police with riot gear and rubber bullets. Students tell Mike Bedigan the final few weeks of academia have been forever tainted by the violence

Alexander Butler2 May 2024 10:30
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Pro-Palestine and Pro-Israel supporters chant ‘F*** Joe Biden'

Alexander Butler2 May 2024 10:15
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UN human rights chief ‘troubled’ by treatment of Gaza protesters at US universities

UN human rights chief ‘troubled’ by treatment of Gaza protesters at US universities

The UN human rights office said on Tuesday (30 April) it was “troubled” by heavy-handed actions taken by US security forces during attempts to break up Gaza protests on college campuses. Demonstrations at universities across the country showed no sign of slowing as they spread coast-to-coast over the weekend and police crackdowns and arrests continued into another week. Students have vowed to stay in tent encampments until their demands are met. Their demands range from a ceasefire in Israel’s war with Hamas to calls for universities to stop investing in Israeli enterprises involved with the country’s military. Marta Hurtado, spokesperson for the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, said the UN is “troubled by a series of heavy-handed steps taken to disperse and dismantle protests”.

Alexander Butler2 May 2024 10:00
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Bernie Sanders says media shouldn’t lose focus of underlying Israel-Hamas war

Stories about campus unrest have captured the attention of newsrooms across the US, but US Senator Bernie Sanders called on media members not to stop covering the underlying Israel-Hamas war, or inquiring about the overwhelmingly Palestinian civilian death toll.

“I suggest to CNN and maybe some of my colleagues here, maybe take your cameras, just for a moment, off of Columbia and UCLA ,” the Vermont senator said in a floor speech. “Maybe go to Gaza, and take your camera show us the emaciated children who are dying from malnutrition because of Netanyahu’s policies.”

Josh Marcus2 May 2024 09:45
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Students occupy UK University campuses in protest against Gaza war

Pro-Palestinian students have gathered in protest at universities across the UK following violent demonstrations at campuses in the US.

Students in Leeds, Newcastle and Bristol set up tents outside university buildings on Wednesday in protest against the war in Gaza.

Bristol students said they staged the action “in protest of the university’s complicity in Israel’s genocide of Palestinians”, while Apartheid Off Campus Newcastle said its demonstration was to “highlight the institution’s investment strategy and its complicity in the Israeli military’s war crimes in Gaza and the West Bank”.

Report:

Students occupy UK university campuses in protest against Gaza war

The protests follow violent clashes at campuses across the US, most prominently at Columbia University in New York.

Namita Singh2 May 2024 09:28

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