An Indian-origin woman studying at Princeton University in the US was one of two students arrested during pro-Palestine protests on the campus, according to reports from student and alumni newspapers.
Achinthya Sivalingan, originally from Tamil Nadu, and Hassan Sayed were arrested after protesters set up tents for an encampment in a university courtyard early Thursday morning, as reported by the Princeton Alumni Weekly (PAW).
The two graduate students were arrested for trespassing and have been “immediately barred from the campus,” said Jennifer Morrill, a university spokesperson, noting that setting up tents on the campus violated university policy.
However, they have not been evicted and will be allowed into their housing, confirmed another varsity spokesperson, Michael Hotchkiss, to the Daily Princetonian.
Ms. Sivalingam is studying for a Masters in Public Affairs in International Development at Princeton, while Mr. Sayed is a PhD candidate there.
According to Morill, the students were given “repeated warnings from the Department of Public Safety to cease the activity and leave the area” and now face disciplinary action. Following their arrest, the other protesters “voluntarily” packed away their camping gear, she added.
Hotchkiss clarified that the university did not evict anyone on Thursday and that the university allows students barred from campus to stay in their university-owned housing.
Undergraduate students were warned against occupation and encampment exercises in an email on Wednesday, according to the Daily Princetonian.
Protests at Princeton included students, faculty, community members, and even outsiders, organizers of the protest said. Large, white tents were set up nearby for upcoming reunions and other events.
One student, identified only as Urvi, described the arrests as “violent,” noting that the students were zip-tied around their wrists. However, the university contested this, stating that the officers did not use any force, and the arrests were made without any resistance.
Pro-Palestine protests have occurred at top US universities as students demonstrate against the Gaza deaths due to the Israeli military operation. The protests, which began at Columbia University in New York, have spread to colleges across the country, with hundreds of students confronting police and raising pro-Palestine slogans. The protesters are calling on their universities to divest from companies that profit from the Gaza war and advocate for an immediate ceasefire.