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Yale, UConn dismantle pro-Palestinian encampments

University of Connecticut police clear out a pro-Palestinian encampment on April 20, 2024, that was set up four days earlier by students demanding UConn divest from any manufacturer of weapons they say are used in the Israel-Hamas war.
Mark Mirko
/
Connecticut Public
University of Connecticut police clear out a pro-Palestinian encampment on April 30, 2024, that was set up four days earlier by students demanding UConn divest from any manufacturer of weapons they say are used in the Israel-Hamas war.

Yale University and UConn on Tuesday dismantled the pro-Palestinian tent encampments on their campuses.

At UConn, 25 people were arrested and charged with criminal trespass and disorderly conduct.

At Yale, demonstrators were told that students who remained in the encampment would be arrested and subject to suspension. Police officers then began removing tents from Cross Campus.

Yale said no students were detained or arrested as of Tuesday morning.

Around the same time Tuesday, UConn's campus police moved in to break up a student tent encampment on the Storrs campus.

UConn said the demonstrators violated school policy by erecting tents and using amplified sound during their protest.

A school spokesperson said of the 25 people arrested, 24 were students, while one is a former student.

A protester holding a replica of a bomb speaks to a group of Yale students and other demonstrators supporting Palestine on April 30, 2024 after police tore down a second encampment on campus that students constructed to protest of the school’s investment in weapons manufacturers associated with Israel.
Ryan Caron King
/
Connecticut Public
A protester holding a replica of a bomb speaks to a group of Yale students and other demonstrators supporting Palestine on April 30, 2024 after police tore down a second encampment on campus that students constructed to protest of the school’s investment in weapons manufacturers associated with Israel.

UConn said in a statement: "The group was warned multiple times over a period of days that while they were free to be in the space and exercise their free speech rights, the guidelines needed to be followed and the tents needed to be taken down. This was ignored."

Before Tuesday's developments, UConn protest organizers posted on Instagram: "Never let the intimidation tactics of the police and administration stifle our movement for a free Palestine. We are only getting stronger!"

Student protesters at Yale and UConn are demanding that their schools divest from any manufacturer of weapons they say are used in the Israel-Hamas war.

Last week, about 45 Yale students were arrested following days of protests.

Student demonstrations have also taken place at Wesleyan University in Middletown, as well as colleges across the Northeast and the U.S.

Connecticut State Police officers exit the University of Connecticut area where UConn police cleared out a pro-Palestinian encampment on April 30, 2024, that was set up four days earlier for students demanding UConn divest from any manufacturer of weapons they say are used in the Israel-Hamas war.
Mark Mirko
/
Connecticut Public
Connecticut State Police officers exit the University of Connecticut area where UConn police cleared out a pro-Palestinian encampment on April 30, 2024, that was set up four days earlier for students demanding UConn divest from any manufacturer of weapons they say are used in the Israel-Hamas war.

Dozens of protesters took over a building at Columbia University in New York early Tuesday, barricading entrances and unfurling a Palestinian flag from a window. Police on Tuesday night arrived on campus, making arrests.

This is a developing story. Connecticut Public's Lori Mack, Jennifer Ahrens and Eric Aasen and The Associated Press contributed to this report.