Stanford Students Arrested During Pro-Palestinian Takeover Protest

(Reuters) – More than a dozen people were arrested at Stanford University in California on Wednesday after pro-Palestinian student protesters barricaded themselves inside the building housing the president's office. school, the latest clash between American students and authorities over the Israel-Gaza conflict. .

According to the student newspaper The Stanford Daily, about 10 students entered the building around 5:30 a.m. on the last day of classes in the spring term, while about 50 students linked arms and surrounded the building, chanting. : “Palestine will be free. “

In an Instagram post, the group Liberate Stanford said an “autonomous group of students” had occupied the office of university president Richard Saller. Students called on the school to divest from businesses linked to Israel's war in Gaza, among other demands.

Police used a crowbar to enter the building about two hours after the protest began, according to the Stanford Daily.

In a statement, the school said 13 people who entered the building illegally were arrested.

“There was extensive damage to the interior and exterior of the building, and there will be no entry into the building for the remainder of the day,” the university said.

Among the arrested students was a Stanford Daily reporter, the newspaper said.

Hundreds of students have been arrested in recent months after organizing demonstrations, setting up camps and, in some cases, occupying buildings to protest the Israeli attack on Gaza, which has killed more than 36,000 Palestinians, according to health authorities in Gaza.

The Israeli campaign began after Hamas, the militant group that rules Gaza, attacked southern Israel on October 7, killing about 1,200 people and taking more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli counts.

(Reporting by Joseph Axe; editing by Rod Nickel)