On Saturday, police arrested over 100 pro-Palestinian protestors at Boston’s Northeastern University after school officials claimed the student demonstration had been infiltrated by outsiders.
University police, Massachusetts State Police, and local law enforcement evicted the encampment on the private university’s Centennial Commons after officials ordered demonstrators to leave.
“What began as a student demonstration two days ago was infiltrated by professional organizers with no affiliation to Northeastern,” campus administrators wrote on X Saturday. “Last night, the use of strong anti-Semitic slogans, such as ‘murder the Jews,’ crossed a limit. We cannot allow this level of hatred on our campus.”
According to a statement from State Police, police encouraged protesters to disperse, and MSP members helped remove those who refused to go. Approximately 102 protestors who refused to comply with dispersal orders were arrested and charged with trespassing and disorderly behavior.
Police took those arrested to the Suffolk County Jail for detention and processing.
According to university officials, students who provided student IDs were not detained, but rather dealt with through the university’s disciplinary system for breaking its code of conduct and will not face prosecution.
Only those who refused to present legitimate student IDs or divulge their affiliations were arrested and charged.
Some pro-Palestinian protestors claim that the “kill the Jews” shout heard during this week’s wave of student rallies around the country is coming from counter-protesters who favor Israel’s war against Hamas.
Similar to prior college campus rallies, Northeastern activists are demanding that the university divest its investments in companies with economic ties to Israel, according to WBTS-TV.