PALESTINE PROTESTS
Watch as police shoot rubber bullets at UCLA protesters
A pro-Palestine protest at UCLA turned violent on Wednesday when counter-protesters showed up, and got even worse Thursday as police fired rubber bullets.
A pro-Palestine encampment set up at the University of California in Los Angeles was attacked on Wednesday by a group of counter-protesters, resulting in brutal violence and chaos. At least 15 people were injured and police were criticized for letting the violence continue on for hours before finally stepping in.
Related: Shocking scenes from Columbia show panicked protesters tumbling down stairs
Things became even more violent on Thursday as the Los Angeles Police Department shot rubber bullets at the protesters in the encampment. The LAPD was initially deployed in order to provide help to the university after the violent outbreaks occurred early on Wednesday morning. Rubber bullets can cause serious damage, in some cases even breaking bones.
After several hours asking the protesters to leave to no avail, the police detained some, binding their hands with zip ties. Thousands had gathered on campus, both inside and outside the encampment, and many protesters formed human chains as police fired flash-bangs to try to get them to disperse. Videos show intense scuffles between the police and the protesters as some of them yelled, “where were you last night?”
The police took down the barricades set up by the protesters to protect the encampment and created an opening towards the tents, tearing many of them down as they entered. The encampment has since ended as the tents and signs protesting Israel’s war in Gaza are now just a big pile on the campus ground.
This protest was one of many campus demonstrations across the United States. They began at Columbia University in New York on April 17 in protest of Israel’s war on Gaza, which was a response to Hamas’ deadly attack on Israel on October 7. Some Israel supporters are calling the protests antisemitic. Those involved say they are peaceful protests promoting Palestinian rights and in protest of the war. Some of the organizers themselves are Jewish, though some antisemitic remarks and threats of violence have been caught on camera.