Police in riot gear began dismantling an anti-Israel encampment at the University of Pennsylvania early Friday and arresting protesters after more than two weeks of the demonstration on campus.
The officers, wearing tactical gear, gave the protesters a 2-minute warning around 6 a.m. to leave the Philadelphia campus or be subject to arrest, NBC10 reported.
It’s unclear how many protesters were detained at the encampment, which was erected 16 days ago.
As of 7 a.m., the majority of the protesters had dispersed or been taken into custody, the outlet reported.
Six students had previously been given “mandatory leaves of absences” from the Ivy League school over their participation in the protest.
“Today, the University issued mandatory temporary leaves of absence for six students in accordance with our policies and pending the results of the Center for Community Standards and Accountability disciplinary investigations. These actions are a result of the University’s continuing response to the unauthorized encampment on College Green,” the school said in a statement Thursday.
Demonstrators on campus refused a mandate to show school ID — and one anti-Israel group celebrated last week that no arrests were made for not complying in the days after that request.
“Because of our collective will and strength, we were able to call the administration’s bluff, resist the panic they intended to set in and win this first battle,” UPenn’s Faculty for Justice in Palestine wrote on Instagram on Monday.
The UPenn encampment is one of the many anti-Israel protests occupying college campuses across the US over the past couple of weeks.
AP
Most of the demonstrations cropped up in response to a tent movement at Columbia University, where hundreds of students and other protesters have been arrested for trespassing and other infractions.
The encampment protesters are calling on universities to divest from Israel due to the ongoing war in the Gaza Strip — though the demonstrations have been called out for their antisemitic and hateful rhetoric.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.