Police arrest protesters at Columbia University

A pro-Palestinian camp is removed; congresswoman’s daughter suspended.

NEW YORK — New York police removed a pro-Palestinian protest encampment at Columbia University on Thursday and arrested dozens of protesters.

Several students involved in the protest said they were also suspended from Columbia and Barnard College, including Isra Hirsi, who is the daughter of Democratic U.S. Rep. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota.

Police did not immediately identify those taken into custody or say how many arrests were made. They did not say what charges they might face.

The congresswoman, at a hearing on Wednesday, had questioned Columbia’s president, Nemat Shafik, about the school’s targeting of pro-Palestinian protesters. The students had been protesting on campus since early Wednesday, demanding the school divest from companies they claim “profit from Israeli apartheid” and the Israeli military action in Gaza.

Shafik issued a statement saying the school had warned protesters Wednesday that they would be suspended if the encampment was not removed. School officials made the decision Thursday to call in police and clear out the demonstrators.

“The individuals who established the encampment violated a long list of rules and policies,” Shafik wrote.

She said the university tried through several channels “to engage with their concerns and offered to continue discussions if they agreed to disperse.”

The school said it was still identifying students involved in the protest Thursday and added that more suspensions would be forthcoming.

Police moved in early Thursday afternoon using zip ties to detain protesters and escort them to waiting buses before removing the tents.

Pro-Palestinian protesters reorganized on campus a short time later, chanting, “Shame.”

“We demand full amnesty for all students disciplined for their involvement in the encampment or the movement for Palestinian liberation,” the protest coalition said in a statement.

A voicemail message was left with Omar’s office on Thursday afternoon seeking comment.