Clash on NJ campus: 13 protesters arrested, university threatens expulsion

PRINCETON — Thirteen pro-Palestinian protesters were arrested Monday night at Princeton University and charged with trespassing when they tried to move their sit-in inside.

University President Christopher Eisgruber said five undergraduates, six graduate students, one postdoctoral researcher and one person not affiliated with the university entered Clio Hall, home of the university’s graduate school, and hung flags from several windows.

Two of the individuals who entered Clio Hall were detained onboard a TigerTransit bus after their arrest, according to coverage of the sit-in by The Daily Princetonian.

Protesters banged on the bus chanting "let them go!"

The students were eventually allowed off the bus.

"Princeton has refused to bargain over our demands through any channels of communication since October. We are taking our demands directly to administration to force Princeton to the table NOW," the protesters wrote on their Instagram page, explaining the takeover.

Chaos and destruction at college campuses

The clash at Princeton comes as pro-Palestine protesters clash with university administrators around the country.

Columbia University in New York has limited campus access to students and essential employees after dozens of protesters took over a building. They barricaded the entrances and unfurled a Palestinian flag out of a window Tuesday in the latest escalation of demonstrations against the Israel-Hamas war.

Video footage showed protesters on Columbia’s Manhattan campus locking arms in front of Hamilton Hall and carrying furniture and metal barricades to the building. At Yale, police moved to clear an encampment, but there were no immediate reports of arrests. Demonstrators are sparring over the Israel-Hamas war and its mounting death toll.

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Eisgruber: "Completely unacceptable"

In a letter released Monday night, Eisgruber said that those arrested have been barred from campus. The students face university discipline, which may extend to suspension or expulsion. The president said the takeover was “completely unacceptable” and a serious breach of the school’s code of conduct.

"Everyone on this campus needs to feel safe and to be safe. Faculty, students, and staff must be able to conduct University business without disruption, harassment, or threat. We will continue to work to ensure that this campus is one where all members of the community feel welcome and can thrive."

According to coverage of the sit-in by The Daily Princetonian, Eisgruber’s letter was read aloud to the protesters by one of the organizers called a marshal. He said it was a “mischaracterization” to not call the protesters peaceful.

“We're going to make sure that President Eisgruber understands that we are here to stay,” the marshal said.

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Protesters: Princeton won't listen

After Princeton's Department of Public Safety shut down an encampment on Thursday, the protesters began a sit-in with approximately 150 participants during the day. Mot participants did not stay overnight per university rules.

The sit-in Monday moved to Cannon Green, a much larger space in the middle of the campus, according to coverage of the sit-in by The Daily Princetonian. It is not known why the sit-in was moved.

The protesters demand that that Princeton divest its investments in Israeli companies, end the school's research on weapons funded by the Department of Defense,  end its abroad program with two Israeli universities, cultivate associations with Palestinian academic and cultural institutions and issue a statement calling for a cease-fire in Gaza.

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The Associated Press contributed to this report.