In a statement issued yesterday late evening, it was reported that “for several days, a small group of faculty members, administrators and members of the university’s senate have been conducting a dialogue with the student organizers to discuss the basis for the dismantling of the encampment, dispersal and the continuation of the university’s policy in the future.”
“We have our demands, and they have theirs,” the university said. The university also denied rumors that the police (NYPD) were called to the campus, calling them “false”.
To recall, on Tuesday late in the evening, Columbia University announced that it had given the protesters an ultimatum until midnight to agree to dismantle the protest camp. However, on Wednesday morning the university announced that it was extending the negotiations for another 48 hours. If no agreement is reached, the university said it would consider “alternative options,” which many of the protesters interpreted as a call for police to evacuate the complex.
The police raided the compound and arrested those who refused to evacuate. New York City Mayor Eric Adams said there were no violent confrontations during the arrests and no one was injured. Meanwhile, the university suspended students who organized the demonstrations, and members of the SJP organization – whose activity was banned on campus. Among those students is the daughter of the Muslim legislator Ilhan Omar – a fierce critic of Israel.