Wave of pro-Palestinian campus protests in US meets forceful response

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Pro-Palestinian protesters are pushed to the edge of campus at the University of Texas on April 24, 2024, in Austin, Texas. (Austin American-Statesman via AP)
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Updated 26 April 2024
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Wave of pro-Palestinian campus protests in US meets forceful response

  • Students protesters tasered and teargassed in Atlanta and "swept away" in Austin, Texas
  • More than 530 arrests have been made in the last week across major US universities in relation to protests over Gaza

NEW YORK: Fresh clashes between police and students opposed to Israel’s war in Gaza broke out on Thursday, raising questions about forceful methods being used to shut down protests that have intensified since mass arrests at Columbia University last week.

Over the past two days, law enforcement at the behest of college administrators have deployed Tasers and tear gas against students protesters at Atlanta’s Emory University, activists say, while officers clad in riot gear and mounted on horseback have swept away demonstrations at the University of Texas in Austin.
At Columbia, the epicenter of the US protest movement, university officials are locked in a stalemate with students over the removal of a tent encampment set up two weeks ago as a protest against the Israeli offensive.
The administration, which has already allowed an initial deadline for an agreement with students to lapse, has given protesters until Friday to strike a deal.
Other universities appear determined to prevent similar, long-running demonstrations to take root, opting to work with police to shut them down quickly and in some cases, with force.
Overall, more than 530 arrests have been made in the last week across major US universities in relation to protests over Gaza, according to a Reuters tally. University authorities have said the demonstrations are often unauthorized and called on police to clear them.




Police officers arrest a demonstrator during a pro-Palestinian protest against the war in Gaza at Emory University on April 25, 2024, in Atlanta, Georgia. (AFP)

At Emory, police detained at least 15 people on its Atlanta campus, according to local media, after protesters began erecting a tent encampment in an attempt to emulate a symbol of vigilance employed by protesters at Columbia and elsewhere.
The local chapter of the activist group Jewish Voice for Peace said officers used tear gas and Tasers to dispense the demonstration and take some protesters into custody.
Video footage aired on FOX 5 Atlanta showed a melee breaking out between officers and some protesters, with officers using what appeared to be a stun gun to subdue a person and others wrestling other protesters to the ground and leading them away.
“Several dozen protesters trespassed into Emory University’s campus early Thursday morning and set up tents,” the school wrote in response to an emailed request for comment. It described the protesters as “activists attempting to disrupt our university,” but did not comment directly on the reports of violence.
Atlanta police did not immediately respond to inquiries about the number of protesters who were detained or about reports over the use of tear gas and stun guns.
Similar scenarios unfolded on the New Jersey campus of Princeton University where officers swarmed a newly-formed encampment, video footage on social media showed.
Boston police earlier forcibly removed a pro-Palestinian encampment set up by Emerson College, arresting more than 100 people, media accounts and police said. The latest clashes came a day after police in riot gear and on horseback descended on hundreds of student protesters at the University of Texas at Austin and arrested dozens of them.




Police arrest a protester at the University of Texas on April 24, 2024, in Austin, Texas. (Austin American-Statesman via AP)

But prosecutors on Thursday dropped charges against most of the 60 people taken into custody, mostly on misdemeanor charges of criminal trespassing and disorderly conduct, and said they would proceed with only 14 of those cases.
In dropping the charges, the Travis County district attorney cited “deficiencies in the probable cause affidavits.”

‘Alarming reports’
Human Rights Watch and the American Civil Liberties Union have condemned the arrest of protesters and urged authorities to respect their free speech rights.
But some Republicans in Congress have accused university administrators of allowing Jewish students to be harassed, putting increasing pressure on schools to tightly control any demonstrations and to block any semi-permanent encampment.
US Education Secretary Miguel Cardona on Thursday said his department was closely monitoring the protests, including what he called “very alarming reports of antisemitism.”
In response, activist groups have strongly denied that the protests are antisemitic. Their aim is to pressure universities from divesting from companies that contribute to the Israeli military actions in Gaza, they say.
Even so, protest leaders have acknowledged that hateful rhetoric has been directed at Jewish students, but insist that people who tried to infiltrate and malign their movement are responsible for any harassment.




Columbia University students participate in an ongoing pro-Palestinian encampment on their campus in New York City on April 25, 2024, following last week's arrest of more than 100 protesters. (Getty Images/AFP)

Friday deadline at Columbia
At Columbia, officials have given protesters until 4 a.m. on Friday to reach an agreement with the university on dismantling dozens of tents set up on the New York City campus in a protest that started a week ago.
An initial deadline of midnight Tuesday came and went without an agreement, but administrators extended it for 48 hours, citing progress in the talks.
The university already tried to shut the protest down by force. On April 18, Columbia President Minouche Shafik took the unusual move of asking police to enter the campus, drawing the ire of many rights groups, students and faculty.
More than 100 people were arrested and the tents were removed from the main lawn. But within a few days, the encampment was back in place, and the university’s options appeared to narrow.
Protesters have vowed to keep the protests going until their universities agree to disclose and divest any financial holdings that might support the war in Gaza, and grant amnesty to students suspended from school during the demonstrations.
Student protesters have also demanded that the US government rein in Israeli strikes on civilians in Gaza, which have killed more than 34,000 people, according to Palestinian health authorities. Israel is retaliating against an Oct. 7 Hamas attack that killed 1,200 people and led to 253 taken hostage, according to Israeli tallies.


Venezuela police arrest suspect in TikTok user’s murder

Updated 2 sec ago
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Venezuela police arrest suspect in TikTok user’s murder

CARACAS: Venezuelan police have arrested an alleged accomplice in the murder of a TikTok influencer who was killed during a livestream after denouncing members of the Tren de Aragua criminal gang and allegedly corrupt police officers.
Jesus Sarmiento, who had more than 77,000 followers on the social media platform, was broadcasting live when armed men entered the residence where he was staying and shot him.
Attorney General Tarek William Saab announced Sunday on Instagram the arrest of Pierina Uribarri, whom he described as the partner of Adrian Romero, the alleged gunman.
Prosecutors charged Uribarri with intentional homicide, criminal association and terrorism.
Arrest warrants had been issued for Romero and two other alleged perpetrators, Wilbert Gonzalez and Gerald Nieto.
In Sarmiento’s final broadcast, banging on a door and a woman’s screams for “help” can be heard in the background.
“They shot me, they shot me,” Sarmiento is heard saying before blood appears on the floor. Two armed men are visible before the broadcast ends.
Sarmiento had spoken in his TikTok posts about the leader of the Tren de Aragua gang, Hector Rusthenford Guerrero, who is one of Venezuela’s most wanted criminals, known by the alias “Nino Guerrero.”
He also posted photos and videos of alleged gang members and denounced extortion by police officers.
The government has maintained that the Tren de Aragua — which the United States considers a “terrorist” organization — has already been dismantled and denies its existence.
In May, a young Mexican influencer was murdered during a live stream in Jalisco state.

Judges to decide if UK can supply parts for Israeli warplanes

Updated 37 min 27 sec ago
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Judges to decide if UK can supply parts for Israeli warplanes

  • The UK government suspended some export licenses for military equipment after concluding there was a risk Israel could be breaching international humanitarian law

LONDON: British judges will rule on Monday on a legal challenge brought by a Palestinian human rights organization seeking to block the UK from supplying components for Israeli F-35 fighter jets.

Israel has used the jets to devastating effect in its bombardment of Gaza, with both sides being accused of atrocities during a conflict that has killed tens of thousands — mostly Palestinian civilians, according to the Hamas-run territory’s health ministry.

The UK government suspended some export licenses for military equipment after concluding there was a risk Israel could be breaching international humanitarian law, but made an exemption for some parts for Lockheed Martin F-35 stealth jets.

In its claim to the High Court, rights group Al-Haq said the “carve out” was unlawful, alleging the government had misunderstood the applicable rules of international law — a claim denied by ministers.

The UK contributes components to an international defense program that produces and maintains the F-35s.

Defense Secretary John Healey said a suspension would impact the “whole F-35 program” and have a “profound impact on international peace and security.”

The London court is due to give its ruling at 0930 GMT.

Al-Haq, which is supported by Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, Oxfam and others in its case, is seeking a court order to stop the supply of UK-made parts for the US warplanes.

Lawyers for Al-Haq said the government had known there was a “clear risk” Israel would use the jet parts to commit violations of international law.

But government lawyer James Eadie said the UK’s trade department had acted lawfully.

He added the court was not placed to rule on the legality of Israel’s actions, and that attempting to do so could have a “potentially deleterious” effect on “foreign relations with a friendly state, namely Israel.”

In September 2024, the new Labour government announced it was suspending around 30 of 350 export licenses following a review of Israel’s compliance with international humanitarian law.

But the partial ban did not cover British-made F-35 parts, which include refueling probes, laser targeting systems, tires and ejector seats, according to Oxfam.

Healey has previously said suspending F-35 licenses would “undermine US confidence in the UK and NATO” but lawyers for Al-Haq have described the exemption as a “loophole.”

UK-based NGO Campaign Against Arms Trade has said that licensing figures showed the government had made a “shocking increase in military exports to Israel” in the months after its September 2024 announcement of partial suspensions.

It said the figures showed the UK approved £127.6 million ($170 million) in military equipment to Israel in single-issue licenses from October to December 2024, saying this was more than for the period from 2020 to 2023 combined.

Most of the licenses were for military radars, components and software, as well as targeting equipment, according to the NGO, which was involved in the case against the government.


Azerbaijan cancels Russian events over the deaths of Azerbaijanis in Yekaterinburg

Updated 55 min 49 sec ago
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Azerbaijan cancels Russian events over the deaths of Azerbaijanis in Yekaterinburg

  • According to Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry, Russian law enforcement raided homes of Azerbaijani residents in the industrial city in Russia’s Ural Mountains on Friday
  • The Azerbaijani government also announced the cancelation of a planned visit by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk

Azerbaijan has canceled all cultural events planned by Russian state and private institutions in protest over the deaths of two Azerbaijanis after police raids in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg, Azerbaijani officials said Sunday.
Azerbaijan’s Culture Ministry wrote on X that concerts, exhibitions, festivals and performances were canceled on account of “the demonstrative targeted and extrajudicial killings and acts of violence committed by Russian law enforcement agencies against Azerbaijanis on ethnic grounds in Yekaterinburg.”
According to Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry, Russian law enforcement raided homes of Azerbaijani residents in the industrial city in Russia’s Ural Mountains on Friday. Two Azerbaijanis were killed, it said, along with several others seriously injured and nine detained.
The ministry on Saturday summoned the Russian Embassy’s chargé d’affaires in Baku, Pyotr Volokovykh, demanding a full investigation and prosecution of those responsible.
The victims were identified as Ziyaddin and Huseyn Safarov, both around 60 years old. Their brother, Sayfaddin Huseynli, told Azerbaijani public broadcaster ITV that the men were tortured to death “without any trial or investigation, despite their innocence.” He described the raids as “savagery,” claiming that others were beaten and subjected to electric shocks.
“The so-called Russian law enforcement agencies broke into houses in the middle of the night, beat and took people away like animals,” Huseynli said.
The Azerbaijani government also announced the cancelation of a planned visit by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk. “The government of Azerbaijan does not consider it appropriate under the current circumstances for Overchuk or any other official representative of Russia to visit the country,” state media reported.
In a statement, Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry said it expected “that the matter will be investigated and all perpetrators of violence brought to justice as soon as possible.”
Without commenting on the reported deaths, Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Saturday that the raids formed part of an investigation into previously committed crimes. Zakharova said raids and detentions targeted Russian citizens of Azerbaijani descent.
Ties between the two countries have been strained for months. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev declined an invitation to attend Russia’s Victory Day parade in Moscow in May. In contrast, Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha visited Baku later that month, signaling closer ties between Baku and Kyiv.
Relations between Moscow and Baku cooled after an Azerbaijani airliner crashed in Kazakhstan in December, killing 38 of 67 people aboard. Aliyev said it was shot down over Russia, albeit unintentionally, and rendered uncontrollable by electronic warfare. He accused Russia of trying to “hush up” the incident for several days. Putin apologized to Aliyev for what he called a “tragic incident” but stopped short of acknowledging responsibility.


German FM visits Kyiv, pledges continued support for Ukraine

Updated 36 min 39 sec ago
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German FM visits Kyiv, pledges continued support for Ukraine

  • Germany has been Ukraine’s second-largest military backer after the United States

KYIV: German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul made an unannounced visit to Kyiv on Monday, in a show of continuing support for Ukraine’s fight to repel Russia’s invasion as US-led international peace efforts fail to make progress.

Wadephul was due to meet with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky and Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha.

Wadephul said in a statement that Germany will help Ukraine “continue to defend itself successfully — with modern air defense and other weapons, with humanitarian and economic aid.”

Germany has been Ukraine’s second-largest military backer after the United States, whose continuing support is in doubt.

However, Berlin has balked at granting Zelensky’s request to provide Ukraine with powerful German- and Swedish-made Taurus long-range missiles. That’s due to fears that such a move could enrage the Kremlin and end up drawing NATO into Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II.

Instead, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz pledged in May to help Ukraine develop its own long-range missile systems that would be free of any Western-imposed limitations on their use and targets.

Wadephul was accompanied on his trip to Kyiv by German defense industry representatives.

Russia’s invasion shows no sign of letting up. Its grinding war of attrition along the roughly 1,000-kilometer (620-mile) front line and long-range strikes on civilian areas of Ukraine have killed thousands of troops and civilians.

The Russian effort to capture more Ukrainian territory has been costly in terms of casualties and damaged armor. But Russian President Vladimir Putin has effectively rejected a ceasefire and hasn’t budged from his war goals.

Putin “doesn’t want negotiations, but (Ukrainian) capitulation,” Wadephul said in his statement.

Russia launched its biggest combined aerial attack against Ukraine at the weekend, Ukrainian officials said, in its escalating bombing campaign that has further dashed hopes for a breakthrough in peace efforts.


UN conference seeks boost for aid as US cuts bite

Updated 30 June 2025
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UN conference seeks boost for aid as US cuts bite

  • UN sustainable development goals set for 2030 are slipping from reach just as the world’s wealthiest countries are withdrawing funding for development programs

SEVILLE: A UN conference aiming to rally fresh support for development aid began in Spain on Monday with the sector in crisis as US-led funding cuts jeopardize the fight against poverty.
At least 50 world leaders including French President Emmanuel Macron, Kenya’s William Ruto, EU chief Ursula von der Leyen and UN head Antonio Guterres are gathering in the city of Seville for the June 30-July 3 meeting.
Senegalese President Bassirou Diomaye Faye, Ecuador’s Daniel Noboa, Angolan leader Joao Lourenco and Sudanese army chief Abdel Fattah Al-Burhan also joined more than 4,000 delegates from businesses, civil society and financial institutions.
But the United States is snubbing the biggest such talks in a decade, underlining the erosion of international cooperation on combating hunger, disease and climate change.
A blistering heatwave that is scorching southern Europe welcomed the delegates to the Fourth International Conference on Financing for Development, an example of the extreme weather that scientists say human-driven climate change is fueling.
UN sustainable development goals set for 2030 are slipping from reach just as the world’s wealthiest countries are withdrawing funding for development programs.
US President Donald Trump’s gutting of his country’s development agency USAID is the standout example, but Germany, Britain and France are also making cuts as they boost spending in areas such as defense.
International charity Oxfam says the cuts to development aid are the largest since 1960 and the United Nations puts the growing gap in annual development finance at $4 trillion.
More than 800 million people live on less than $3 a day, according to the World Bank, with rising extreme poverty affecting sub-Saharan Africa in particular.
Disruption to global trade from Trump’s tariffs and ongoing conflicts in the Middle East and Ukraine have dealt further blows to the diplomatic cohesion necessary for concentrating efforts on helping countries escape poverty.


Among the key topics up for discussion is reforming international finance to help poorer countries shrug off a growing debt burden that inhibits their capacity to achieve progress in health and education.
The total external debt of the group of least developed countries has more than tripled in 15 years, according to UN data.
Critics have singled out US-based bulwarks of the post-World War II international financial system, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund, for reform to improve their representation of the Global South.
Painstaking talks in New York in June produced a common declaration to be adopted in Seville that only went ahead after the United States walked out.
The document reaffirms commitment to the UN development goals such as eliminating poverty and hunger, promoting gender equality, reforming tax systems and international financial institutions.
The text also calls on development banks to triple their lending capacity, urges lenders to ensure predictable finance for essential social spending and for more cooperation against tax evasion.
Coalitions of countries will seek to spearhead initiatives in addition to the so-called “Seville Commitment,” which is not legally binding.
But campaigners have criticized the text for lacking ambition and have rung alarm bells about rising global inequality.
“Global development is desperately failing because... the interests of a very wealthy few are put over those of everyone else,” said Amitabh Behar, executive director of Oxfam International.
Hundreds of demonstrators braved the sizzling heat in Seville on Sunday to demand change in international tax, debt and aid policies.
“Global south countries will never be able to decide how they want to do development if they are bound to the new colonial debt,” protester Ilan Henzler, 28, told AFP.
“We are here to fight for the abolition of this illegitimate debt.”