Police in riot gear staged a pre-dawn raid on a pro-Palestinian housing encampment at University of California, Los Angeles.
This came after students refused to leave the protest site that has been set up on campus since last Thursday, despite police order.
Dozens of protesters were taken into custody in zip ties and the encampment was reduced to rubble. Wooden boards set up at the premises were dismantled, tents were flipped over and trash and debris were laid out across the lawn.
While protests over the Israel-Hamas war have spread across college campuses throughout the U.S., this was the most forceful response yet.
California Highway Patrol said over 130 students were arrested, and law enforcement did experience some resistance.
Students dispersed the area around 3 a.m. during the raid and the police presence died down later into the morning. Students returned later that morning to sift through their belongings left at the site.
Police had raided the area for about two hours. They lobbed flash-bangs, which produce loud noise and bright light to stun people, and also used rubber bullets on some occasions to fire at protesters.
For the most part, things did not get too physical. Scripps News was on the ground and did not witness any altercations between police and protesters.
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When police swept through the area, protesters shouted chants and set up additional barricades, but police in riot gear with batons pushed most of them out. Those who were arrested were put onto buses.
What will happen to the protesters who were arrested remains to be seen. The California Highway Patrol told Scripps News that there will be an intake process, but what charges they will face remains up to UCLA.
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass issued a statement, saying, "Every student deserves to be safe and live peacefully on their campus. Harassment, vandalism and violence have no place at UCLA or anywhere in our city."
The Board of Regents at UCLA will meet Friday to discuss the protests.
Student protesters had been fighting for the entire UC system — not just UCLA — to divest from its interests in Israel.
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