The University of Pennsylvania requested increased police support on Friday amid escalating protests in support of Palestinians on campus, CNN reported.
Meanwhile, NBC News statistics showed over 2,100 arrests related to university protests.
Footage emerged of a camp set up by students in a courtyard at the University of Washington in Seattle, showing solidarity with Palestinians in Gaza.
Protesters urged the university to sever ties with Israel and Boeing, which they claimed manufactures attack helicopters used in Gaza.
Demonstrators called on President Joe Biden, who has supported Israel’s right to self-defense, to exert more effort to stop bloodshed in Gaza. They also urged universities to divest from companies supporting the Israeli government.
Video footage captured by a bystander showed protesters confronting police at Portland State University amid tense scenes on the American university campus between law enforcement and pro-Palestinian demonstrators.
According to the Portland Police Bureau, at least 12 people, including four students, were arrested during the clashes.
President Biden stated that some seek to achieve political goals in the protests witnessed at American universities and educational institutions, calling for a change in the current administration’s policy regarding the Gaza conflict.
He added via the platform “X” that peaceful protests are protected by law in America, while violent protests have no protection and are against the law.
Protests in support of Palestinians demanding an end to the Gaza ceasefire and the withdrawal of investments from companies linked to Israel have spread to several American universities in the past two weeks since officials at Columbia University summoned police to dismantle a camp on the university campus in New York City.
