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BREAKING: Pro-Palestine Protesters Violently Storm Columbia’s Hamilton Hall After Order To Disperse

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8 months ago

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After anti-Israel protesters were ordered to disperse from their nearly two-week encampment on Columbia University’s campus, the situation escalated dramatically on Thursday evening when protesters violently stormed Hamilton Hall.

Video from the scene shows rioters using hammers and crowbars windows and bringing in a number of objects, including bike racks and picnic tables in order to occupy the building. Rioters could be heard chanting “we will not stop, we will not rest,” as they smashed windows in order to open locked doors in the building.

Others chanted “Israel is a terror state” and “1.2.3.4… occupation no more.”

In a statement issued Monday morning, Columbia president Minouche Shafik said that academic leaders had engaged in “constructive dialogue” with student organizers on how to proceed, but that those talks have stalled. “Regretfully, we were not able to come to an agreement,” she said.

“We urge those in the encampment to voluntarily disperse,” the statement continued. “We are consulting with a broader group in our community to explore internal options to end this crisis as soon as possible.”

The encampment remained well after the deadline passed, however, as numerous members of the Columbia faculty locked arms in order to shield the encampment.

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The situation escalated dramatically shortly after midnight on Tuesday, as the days-long protest devolved into a riot.

Protesters emulated a similar situation observed at Cal Poly Humboldt, where protesters stormed then occupied a campus building. Police clashed with rioters last week, though they were ultimately unable to dislodge them from the building.

The building was soon renamed “Intifada Hall” by protesters, who have “occupied” it for more than a week. In-person classes at both Columbia and Cal Poly Humboldt have been cancelled for the remainder of the year as a result of the disturbances.

Rioters have demanded that Columbia completely divest from Israeli-linked companies, cut ties with Israeli universities, drop all charges against the protesters and calls for a ceasefire in the Gaza Strip. While some of their demands have been met, the situation still devolved into a riot on Tuesday morning.

A number of individuals dressed in black bloc, Antifa-style clothing could be seen smashing windows and crawling into additional buildings around the campus. At Hamilton Hall, similarly dressed rioters unveiled a banner reading “Hind’s Halll,” seemingly indicating that it had been “renamed.”

The name seemingly refers to a five-year-old Palestinian girl who was killed as a result of the conflict.

This is a developing story.



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