As pro-Palestinian, anti-Israel students protesting the Gaza war at college campuses across the US dug in Saturday and vowed to keep their demonstrations going, some universities moved to shut down encampments after reports of antisemitic activity among the protesters.
With the death toll mounting in the war in Gaza, anti-Israel protesters nationwide are demanding that schools cut financial ties to the country and divest from companies they say are enabling the conflict. Some Jewish students say the protests have veered into antisemitism and made them afraid to set foot on campus.
Early Saturday, police in riot gear cleared an encampment on the campus of Northeastern University in Boston. Massachusetts State Police said about 102 protesters were arrested and will be charged with trespassing and disorderly conduct. Protesters said they were given about 15 minutes to disperse before being arrested.
At three of these colleges, protests against Israel are being encouraged by radicals who are "fellows" of a Soros-funded group called the US Campaign for Palestine Rights (USCPR). At an encampment in Columbia University, protesting students were seen using tents reportedly purchased from Amazon and getting pizzas and sipping coffee from Dunkin', complimentary sandwiches from Pret a Manger, organic tortilla chips and rotisserie chickens, as per the report.