Pro-Palestine protests resume at Columbia University

Protests in solidarity with Palestine resumed at Columbia University in New York City on the first day of the fall semester.

Demonstrators on Tuesday demanded that the university sever ties with Israel because of the carnage in besieged Gaza and for Tel Aviv to halt its attacks on the blockaded enclave.

Columbia Students for Justice in Palestine wrote on X that the university is involved "in genocide."

"We refuse to live in a world where the mass murder of Palestinians is normal, acceptable, and profitable. Columbia University is complicit in genocide. Their investments in weapons manufacturers & defense contractors, companies such as Lockheed Martin, are fueling the genocide" the student group said.

In a subsequent post, students vowed further demonstrations, labelling the recent protest as just the beginning.

"As we begin our new semester, students in Gaza have no universities to return to. Instead of listening to the student body, Columbia University is doubling down. We will not stop & we will not rest until Columbia divests from apartheid and genocide. This is just the beginning," they added.

The protests resumed a few weeks after former president Minouche Shafik stepped down on August 14, following months of crackdown on students.

Crackdown on students

Pro-Palestine student protests erupted on US campuses on April 17, when police arrested students at Columbia University during demonstrations.

As protests spread across the country, police arrested hundreds of students. In some cases, cops even responded with violence.

The students' protests sparked similar demonstrations in other countries, including Canada, France, and the UK.

As protests continue at universities, Israel continues its rampage in Gaza. Most of the blockaded enclave is reduced to ruins after relentless Israeli bombing that has killed nearly 41,000 Palestinians, mostly women and children.

The Israeli carnage has caused a massive shortage of necessities, including water, food, electricity, and medicine, all of which increased the spread of diseases.