University Of Michigan Police Clear Pro-Palestinian Encampment

ANN ARBOR, MI — University of Michigan Police cleared on Tuesday morning an encampment that pro-Palestinian protesters created on university grounds last month, according to university officials.

Students created the encampment on the University of Michigan Diag in April to demand the school divest itself from Israeli companies amid Israel's war with Hamas.

Video posted to social media by the organization who created the encampment, the TAHRIR Coalition, showed officers using pepper spray on protesters.

It wasn't clear if anyone was injured in the clash, but the Washtenaw County Sheriff's Office said four people were arrested in connection with resisting and obstructing.

The protesters were eventually driven away from the Diag, which was then blocked off by police tape. UHaul trucks were also brought to clear the encampment.

University of Michigan President Santa J. Ono released a statement Tuesday morning announcing the end of the encampment. The statement said the protesters refused to comply with requests to remove the external camp barriers, refrain from overloading power sources and stop using open flames.

"Ensuring that the campus is safe — for students, faculty, employees, university visitors, and protesters — is a paramount concern, which is why the university has provided 24-hour security for the encampment over the past four weeks," Ono said. "Following a May 17 inspection by the university fire marshal, who determined that were a fire to occur, a catastrophic loss of life was likely, the fire marshal and Student Life leaders asked camp occupants to remove external camp barriers, refrain from overloading power sources, and stop using open flames."

"The protesters refused to comply with these requests. That forced the university to take action and this morning, we removed the encampment," he added.

Ono went on to say that students are welcome to protest at the university, but as long as those protests don’t violate the rights of others and are consistent with university policies meant to ensure the safety of our community.

"To be clear, there is no place for violence or intimidation at the University of Michigan," Ono said. "Such behavior will not be tolerated, and individuals will be held accountable."