14 anti-Israel agitators arrested after violent clash with NYPD at Brooklyn College Gaza camp

At least 14 people were apprehended at New York City's Brooklyn College on Thursday after a group of anti-Israel agitators attempted to set up a pro-Palestinian encampment on campus. Those arrested have been charged with various offenses, including disorderly conduct and trespassing. The group of masked rioters violently clashed with police and were taken into custody after refusing dispersal orders, police said.

NYPD responded to the Bedford Avenue campus around 6 pm, and upon arrival, officers found the demonstrators "occupying and trespassing on school grounds," the New York Post reported. The encampment was set up around 4:50 pm. Video footage shows keffiyeh-wearing protesters physically clashing with the police as officers moved to disband the occupation.

Seven of the 14 people were arrested, while the other seven received summonses for lower-level offenses, an NYPD spokesperson said Friday, according to Gothamist. Video footage shared on social media shows an officer deploying a taser to subdue a rioter as tension escalated.

Richard Pietras, a spokesperson for CUNY, released a statement on Friday saying that the tents violated school policy. "After multiple warnings to take the tents down and disperse, members of CUNY Public Safety and NYPD removed the tents and dispersed the crowd. The safety of our campus community will always be paramount, and Brooklyn College respects the right to protest while also adhering to strict rules meant to ensure the safe operation of our University," said Pietras.

The Brooklyn College protest came one day after masked anti-Israel militants stormed and temporarily occupied Columbia University's Butler Library while students were studying for final exams, resulting in the suspensions of at least 65 students and 33 outside agitators. Across the country in Washington state, black clad Antifa militants and pro-Palestinian agitators occupied an engineering building on Monday at the University of Washington to protest Israel's war against Hamas. The group set fires, created barricades, and caused more than $1 million in damage to the building. At least 21 students involved in the UW occupation have been suspended and banned from campus.

The Trump administration is probing federal funding for these colleges and others, and the State Department is reviewing student visas.