Police storm university building to end student Gaza protest

NEW YORK police stormed a building at Columbia University, the hotbed of US-wide campus demonstrations against Israel’s war in Gaza, arresting dozens as they ended a 24-hour sit-in by protesters.

- Jitendra Joshi

Footage broadcast live showed riot police using a ladder on top of an NYPD van to enter Hamilton Hall via a second-floor window, before hauling the occupiers out with their hands in cable ties. A tent encampment on the Manhattan site’s grounds was also cleared.

The hall was one of several at Columbia that was also occupied during anti-Vietnam War protests in 1968. The new wave of nationwide demonstrations against Israel represents a growing challenge for President Joe Biden, who is relying on the student vote to help fend off Donald Trump in November’s White House election.