US campus protests wane after crackdowns, Biden rebuke

AFP | Washington  

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Pro-Palestinian protests that have rocked US campuses for weeks were more muted yesterday after a series of clashes with police, mass arrests and a stern White House directive to restore order.

Police in Manhattan cleared an encampment at New York University after sunrise, with video posted to social media by an official showing protesters exiting their tents and dispersing when ordered by loudspeaker.

The scene appeared relatively calm compared to crackdowns at other campuses around the country -- and some worldwide -- where protests over Israel’s war in Gaza have multiplied in recent weeks.

University administrators, who have tried to balance the right to protest and complaints of violence and hate speech, have increasingly called on police to clear out the protesters ahead of year-end exams and graduation ceremonies -- and some clashes with counter-protesters.

More than 2,000 arrests have been made in the past two weeks across the United States, some during violent confrontations with police, giving rise to accusations of over-use of force.

President Joe Biden, who has faced pressure from all political sides over the Israel-Hamas war, gave his first expansive remarks on the protests Thursday, saying that “order must prevail.” “We are not an authoritarian nation where we silence people or squash dissent,” Biden said in a televised statement from the White House.