LOS ANGELES — Around 25 people were arrested Monday night in a pro-Palestinian protest at UCLA.
#UCLAProtests UPDATE…as protest ends LAPD confirms 27 protesters were arrested by UCLA police officers in a confrontation behind Dodd Hall on Monday evening. 25 were cited and released….two others were held for unknown reasons. Protesters dispersed after Midnight. @knxnews pic.twitter.com/riOebJZdma
— Pete Demetriou (@knxpete) June 11, 2024
The arrestees were cited for willfully interrupting university operations, according to an emailed statement from the UCLA Police Department to the Daily Bruin, the campus newspaper.
CBS 2 reported multiple people were seen being detained or arrested during a clash with officers from several police agencies around 8 p.m. Officers also confiscated wooden shields that some of the demonstrators carried.
Graeme Blair, a member of Faculty for Justice in Palestine at UCLA, said in a statement sent at 10:25 p.m. via text message that male protesters detained by law enforcement were released from custody, the Daily Bruin reported.
Protesters initially gathered on the campus earlier in the day for a funeral-procession-like march in honor of the “over 46,000 Palestinians who have been martyred or buried under the rubble” in the Israel-Hamas war.
After that procession, which included people carrying fake bloody bodies and body parts, the group began amassing in the Dickson Plaza area, the site of an earlier massive encampment that stayed in place for more than a week before it was dismantled by police in an operation that resulted in more than 200 arrests.
Protesters on Monday again began erecting tents in the plaza, and at one point stood in formation at the top of the Janss Steps that lead into the plaza to prevent people from entering. Some makeshift barricades were also assembled, and protesters also dyed the water in a plaza fountain red.
University police and campus security officers were quick to respond to the area and used bicycles in an effort to prevent more protesters from entering the area.
A UCPD officer told the Daily Bruin that the gathering had already been declared an unlawful assembly by shortly after 4 p.m. The Los Angeles Police Department briefly declared a citywide tactical alert, enable the agency to keep officers on duty beyond their normal shifts.
Shortly before 6 p.m., university police gave protesters 10 minutes to disperse, telling them they would face arrest if they did not leave the area.
The group dismantled their tents and removed other materials from the plaza, and walked down the Janss Steps and headed out of that area, but roving demonstrations continued.
ABC 7 reported at least one officer was being treated for injuries suffered during the protest.
The earlier massive encampment was dismantled at UCLA on May 2.
