Columbia begins suspending student protesters who haven't left encampment

(NewsNation) — Columbia University says it has started suspending student protesters at the pro-Palestine encampment who defied the school’s 2 p.m. ET deadline to leave the area.

The school announced Monday that anyone who does not clear encampments on university property will face suspension and find themselves ineligible to finish the semester in good standing.

Despite this, students have continued protesting with no signs of stopping.

Meanwhile, there’s no indication that pro-Palestinian protests on other college campuses across the nation are coming to an end anytime soon.

One Columbia protester tells NewsNation that student leaders in the encampment asked the group whether they should remain there past 2 p.m. and were met with cheers of agreement.

Protesters at George Washington University in Washington, D.C., breached and dismantled barriers Monday morning. According to the school, 200 professional organizers, activists and university students have joined the unauthorized encampment.

Negotiations between universities and pro-Palestinian groups have failed over the weekend, leading to additional arrests and violence.

Many universities have taken steps to continue the semester remotely, and some have even gone as far as to cancel commencement ceremonies in the wake of unrest.

WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 29: Activists and students dance during a protest at an encampment at University Yard at George Washington University on April 29, 2024 in Washington, DC. Late Sunday evening, more than 100 activists and students flooded into the encampment after barricades fell as the protest has continued through their fourth day, in solidarity with college campuses across the United States that have started encampments to call on their universities to divest financial ties from Israel.(Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES – APRIL 29: Students at George Washington University remove the barricades previously erected by the police that cut off the university as they gather to protest against the attacks in Gaza and show support for Palestinians in Washington, D.C., United States on April 29, 2024. (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 29: Activists and students protest at an encampment at University Yard at George Washington University on April 29, 2024 in Washington, DC. Late Sunday evening, more than 100 activists and students flooded into the encampment after barricades fell as the protest has continued through their fourth day, in solidarity with college campuses across the United States that have started encampments to call on their universities to divest financial ties from Israel.(Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 29: People sit on the sidewalk outside a building as they watch activists and students protest at an encampment at University Yard at George Washington University on April 29, 2024 in Washington, DC. Late Sunday evening, more than 100 activists and students flooded into the encampment after barricades fell as the protest has continued through their fourth day, in solidarity with college campuses across the United States that have started encampments to call on their universities to divest financial ties from Israel.(Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 29: A person waves a Palestinian flag as activists and students protest at an encampment at University Yard at George Washington University on April 29, 2024 in Washington, DC. Late Sunday evening, more than 100 activists and students flooded into the encampment after barricades fell as the protest has continued through their fourth day, in solidarity with college campuses across the United States that have started encampments to call on their universities to divest financial ties from Israel.(Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES – APRIL 28: Students at George Washington University remove the barricades previously erected by the police that cut off the university as they gather to protest against the attacks in Gaza and show support for Palestinians in Washington, D.C., United States on April 28, 2024. (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 29: People walk around the University yard as activists and students protest near an encampment at University Yard at George Washington University on April 29, 2024 in Washington, DC. Late Sunday evening, more than 100 activists and students flooded into the encampment after barricades fell as the protest has continued through their fourth day, in solidarity with college campuses across the United States that have started encampments to call on their universities to divest financial ties from Israel.(Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES – APRIL 28: Students at George Washington University remove the barricades previously erected by the police that cut off the university as they gather to protest against the attacks in Gaza and show support for Palestinians in Washington, D.C., United States on April 28, 2024. (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 29: A man lays on piled bike racks as two others hold Palestinian flags as activists and students protest at an encampment at University Yard at George Washington University on April 29, 2024 in Washington, DC. Late Sunday evening, more than 100 activists and students flooded into the encampment after barricades fell as the protest has continued through their fourth day, in solidarity with college campuses across the United States that have started encampments to call on their universities to divest financial ties from Israel.(Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 29:Piled bike racks are seen as activists and students protest at an encampment at University Yard at George Washington University on April 29, 2024 in Washington, DC. Late Sunday evening, more than 100 activists and students flooded into the encampment after barricades fell as the protest has continued through their fourth day, in solidarity with college campuses across the United States that have started encampments to call on their universities to divest financial ties from Israel.(Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 29: After gaining control of the encampment area, activists and students chant and sing at University Yard at George Washington University on April 29, 2024 in Washington, DC. Late Sunday evening, more than 100 activists and students flooded into the encampment after barricades fell as the protest has continued through their fourth day, in solidarity with college campuses across the United States that have started encampments to call on their universities to divest financial ties from Israel.(Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES – APRIL 29: Students at George Washington University remove the barricades previously erected by the police that cut off the university as they gather to protest against the attacks in Gaza and show support for Palestinians in Washington, D.C., United States on April 29, 2024. (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON DC, UNITED STATES – APRIL 29: A police vehicle is seen as students at George Washington University remove the barricades previously erected by the police that cut off the university as they gather to protest against the attacks in Gaza and show support for Palestinians in Washington, D.C., United States on April 29, 2024. (Photo by Celal Gunes/Anadolu via Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC – APRIL 29: A man holds up a Palestinian flag as Activists and students chant, surrounding piled barricades at an encampment at University Yard at George Washington University on April 29, 2024 in Washington, DC. Late Sunday evening, more than 100 activists and students flooded into the encampment after barricades fell as the protest has continued through their fourth day, in solidarity with college campuses across the United States that have started encampments to call on their universities to divest financial ties from Israel.(Photo by Kent Nishimura/Getty Images)

Pro-Palestinian protests turn violent

Many campuses were largely quiet over the weekend as demonstrators stayed by tents erected as protest headquarters, although a few colleges saw forced removals and arrests.

Protesters at the University of Texas at Austin clashed with campus police Monday afternoon after the UTPD sent a dispersal order just after 1 p.m.

Students around the country are demanding their universities cut financial ties with Israel over the large-scale military operation in Gaza that Israel says was launched to stamp out the militant Palestinian group Hamas.

At least 100 protesters were detained at Northeastern University in Boston, 70 were detained at Arizona State University, and close to 80 were arrested at Washington University in St. Louis over the weekend. The Associated Press reported there have been nearly 900 arrests at college campus protests since April 18.

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 28: Tension rises between Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protestors on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) on April 28, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Grace Hie Yoon/Anadolu via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 28: Tension rises between Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protestors on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) on April 28, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Grace Hie Yoon/Anadolu via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 28: Tension rises between Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protestors on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) on April 28, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Grace Hie Yoon/Anadolu via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 28: Tension rises between Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protestors on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) on April 28, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Grace Hie Yoon/Anadolu via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 28: Tension rises between Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protestors on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) on April 28, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Grace Hie Yoon/Anadolu via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 28: Tension rises between Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protestors on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) on April 28, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Grace Hie Yoon/Anadolu via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 28: Tension rises between Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protestors on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) on April 28, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Grace Hie Yoon/Anadolu via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 28: Tension rises between Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protestors on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) on April 28, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Grace Hie Yoon/Anadolu via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA – APRIL 28: Tension rises between Pro-Palestinian and pro-Israeli protestors on the campus of the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) on April 28, 2024 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Grace Hie Yoon/Anadolu via Getty Images)

Clashes have broken out as well. A growing crowd at the University of California, Los Angeles, turned violent over the weekend, with demonstrators screaming at each other and getting physical. One pro-Israeli woman suffered a head injury after falling to the ground and had to be carried out by emergency crews.

The university stepped up security after “some physical altercations broke out among demonstrators,” Mary Osako, vice chancellor for UCLA Strategic Communications, said in a statement.

At Cal Poly Humboldt in Arcata, California, campus officials estimate vandalism has resulted in millions of dollars in damages. On Sunday night, the university offered protesters a last-chance deadline to leave occupied buildings before 7 p.m. ET to avoid immediate arrest.

However, the school said it will remain closed and will continue remote for the rest of the semester.

Student lawsuit against Columbia

An anonymous student brought a lawsuit against Columbia University saying the school failed to provide a safe learning environment amid the ongoing pro-Palestine protests.

The suit against the school’s trustees recognizes the right to protest but alleges that while many of the protests are peaceful, a subset are “continuing to commit acts of violence.”

According to the filing, Jewish students have been physically attacked and targeted by pro-Hamas hate speech. The lawsuit accuses those protesters of inciting violence against Jewish students and pro-Israel counterprotesters on campus.

Lawyers argue that backing down on a demand for the encampment to be cleared and continuing to negotiate with protesters while moving to a hybrid learning model is unfair and creates a disparate experience between Jewish and non-Jewish students.

Fetterman reacts to protests

Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., spoke exclusively with NewsNation’s Chris Stirewalt Sunday about the college campus protests.

“Of course, it’s a great American value to protest, but I don’t believe living in a pup tent for Hamas is really helpful,” Fetterman said. “I can’t end that war. Joe Biden can’t end that war. Netanyahu can’t end that war. But Hamas could end it right now, immediately. They could release the last hostage, and they could surrender. All of the misery and death and destruction ends right there too.”

The Associated Press and Devan Markham contributed to this report.