Anti-Israel students slammed the university for inviting the police to the campus, accusing officers of being part of a “Zionist militia.”
By World Israel News Staff
Administrators at a prestigious London university announced that they will be clamping down on anti-Israel campus demonstrations, pledging to dismantle a large protest encampment on the school grounds.
The statement from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) came after seven people were arrested on campus, with the university admitting that the tent encampments had attracted “homeless people and persons wanted by the police.”
Just after midnight on Tuesday, July 9th, “officers were called to an encampment at a university in the Holborn area to a report that a theft and assault had taken place,” London Metropolitan police said in a media statement.
“A man was arrested on suspicion of theft. When officers tried to leave they were prevented from doing so and as a result officers made six further arrests.
“The arrests were made on suspicion of obstruction of police, assault on an emergency worker, possession of drugs, and for being wanted for an outstanding offence.”
Referring to the encampment as “unmanageable,” the school did not elaborate on what action it would take to disperse the demonstrators, some of whom appear to be living in their protest tents on campus.
Anti-Israel students released a statement slamming the university for inviting the police to the campus, accusing officers of being part of a “Zionist milita.”
Notably, despite their pledge to shut down the encampment, the school denied that it had called the police.
“The police have visited the encampment of their own accord, including to look for a suspected criminal,” SOAS said in a media statement.
“The situation is now of sufficient concern that we feel that we can no longer guarantee the safety of our students and staff even with the additional security staff in place.”
The school stressed that it may ask for help from the police in the future “if events escalate out of control.”