Pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested and suspended after taking over and occupying the office of Stanford University’s president.
Students at the university in California took over and occupied the office of Stanford University President Richard Saller around 5:30 a.m. on Wednesday, according to the Stanford Daily. University officials reported that “extensive graffiti vandalism” had been left on the “sandstone buildings and columns of the Main Quad,” according to NBC News.
Officials confirmed to the outlet that thirteen people who had been inside the building had been arrested, while those who were students were “immediately suspended.”
Seniors who were involved in the protest would “not be allowed to graduate,” officials added.
“We are appalled and deeply saddened by the actions that occurred on our campus earlier today,” Saller and Stanford University Provost Jenny Martinez said in a joint statement, according to the outlet.
Photos posted to social media showed graffiti written on the buildings of Standford University saying, “De@th 2 Isr@hell,” “F**k Amerikkka,” and “Free Palestine.”
This morning, anti-Israel protestors broke into President Saller’s office at @Stanford, leaving graffiti in the hallways including “F**k America,” “Death 2 Isr@hell,” and “Free Palestine.”
Yet another desperate attempt at escalation that only reveals true hate.
📷: @tab_delete pic.twitter.com/pxJlq09qnU
— JCRC Bay Area (@SFJCRC) June 5, 2024
A masked protester can be seen sitting in Saller’s office in a video posted to X. The masked protester states that students are “occupying President Richard Saller’s office in light of the ongoing genocide in Gaza carried out by the Israeli government.”
Masked student sits in the President of Stanford University’s office and announces list of demands.
• Divest from Israel
• Disclose Investments
• Amnesty for all Student Protests
— Oli London (@OliLondonTV) June 5, 2024
“We have three demands,” the protester continues. “First, we demand a divestment is put on the agenda of the Board of Trustees meeting on June 12 and 13. Second, we demand that Stanford disclose their 2022 financial year investments. Finally, we demand amnesty for all student protesters on Standford’s campus.”
During the month of April and into early May, anti-Israel protesters at various college and university campuses across the nation started encampments and staged protests over the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas in Gaza.
The protests and encampments that flooded university campuses such as George Washington University, the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), the University of Vermont, and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, among many others, were inspired by an initial encampment established at Columbia University on April 17.
The day after the encampment at Columbia University was suspended, several students were suspended and hundreds of protesters were arrested. Another encampment popped up in its place and remained until the New York Police Department (NYPD) conducted a raid of the campus after protesters seized control of an academic building.
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