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SvennoJ on 01 May 2024
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Los Angeles University UCLA

Pro-Palestine UCLA protesters stood their ground despite assault by counter-protesters

What we’ve seen is a really shocking and ugly scene of violence as what appears to be hundreds of pro-Israel attackers have assaulted the encampment of the pro-Palestinian student protesters.

The attackers were hurling missiles, fireworks, stones, even scooters – anything that they could get their hands on to throw inside the camp in an attempt to, one presumes, force student protesters to leave the area.

Police did not show up for a long time. The number of injured is difficult to say at this hour, although we’ve seen reports on social media saying that some people have been led away with injuries.

The encampment is still there, and the student protesters, despite this attack, have stood their ground. They haven’t fled.

This has happened before, although on a smaller scale; for example, over the weekend, particularly on Sunday night, the camp was attacked in a similar fashion.

LAPD on UCLA campus

Los Angeles police say they have deployed officers at the UCLA campus to restore order after the clashes that broke out on its grounds.

“At the request of UCLA, due to multiple acts of violence within the large encampment on their campus, the LAPD is responding to assist UCLA PD, and other law enforcement agencies, to restore order and maintain public safety,” LA police said in a post on social platform X.

Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said in a post on X that “the violence unfolding this evening at UCLA is absolutely abhorrent and inexcusable”.


UCLA pro-Palestine protesters create makeshift barricades, shields

We have spoken to Joey Scott, an investigative journalist in Los Angeles, about how the pro-Palestine protesters at UCLA are protecting themselves following the attack by masked counter-protesters.

He said the protesters have re-commandeered the metal fencing that the counter-protesters threw at them during the attack, and have used it to re-enforce the barricades.

Many are also carrying umbrellas and have created “makeshift shields to protect themselves”, Scott told Al Jazeera.

He said the protesters had organised themselves in a very “defensive posture” at the moment, considering the counter-protesters had been “wielding the violence”.


The encampment on the UCLA campus


Attack on pro-Palestinian protesters at UCLA: Here’s what to know

  • Hundreds of seemingly pro-Israel attackers assaulted an encampment of pro-Palestinian student protesters at UCLA.
  • The attackers hurled projectiles at the encampment as they tried to break through makeshift barricades.
  • Violent clashes ensued between the protesters and the counter-protesters, many of whom were masked.
  • Television footage showed people clashing with sticks and tearing down metal barricades. Others were seen launching fireworks or hurling objects at each other in the dark – lit up with laser pointers and bright flashlights.
  • Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said police had arrived on campus, calling the violence “absolutely abhorrent and inexcusable”.


Pro-Palestine UCLA campus attacked by pro-Israel counter-protesters


Counter-protesters attempt to move a barricade at an encampment on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California, US, on May 1


A pro-Palestinian protester is attacked by counter-protesters at the UCLA campus


Counter-protesters remove barricades at the pro-Palestinian encampment


Protesters in support of Palestinians in Gaza help one another rinse their eyes

Israel supporters attack anti-war protesters at UCLA university in US

 

Sticks, bottles thrown at pro-Palestine protesters at UCLA

Sergio Olmos, an investigative journalist reporting from the UCLA campus, arrived on the scene just after midnight (about 07:00 GMT).

He told Al Jazeera that he witnessed several hundred counterprotesters trying to tear down walls set up by the pro-Palestine encampment. He described counterprotesters throwing projectiles at the encampment, trying to hit the pro-Palestine protesters with sticks and in some cases throwing glass bottles.

He also reported a number of minor injuries and significant amounts of pepper spray used. Olmos said it remained unclear if the counterprotestors “have a unified message other than they are opposing the Palestinian demonstration”.


Violence at UCLA was not ‘mutual combat’

Olmos, the investigative journalist reporting from the UCLA campus, adds that it had been the counterprotesters who had instigated the violence against the pro-Palestine protest encampment.

“It wasn’t like they were both coming out to brawl. It wasn’t mutual combat,” he said.

While the pro-Palestine protesters were in their encampment, the counterprotesters came out and “started trying to take down the camp and engage in brawls” with some of them setting off fireworks, Olmos said.

“This group of counterprotesters were really pushing for a fight,” he said.

He added that police arrived after more than an hour and “stood maybe a few hundred feet away, just watching for an hour”.

“The brawl went on for about two hours without any police intervention. Once the police decided to move in, the counterprotesters left,” Olmos said.

He added that police are trying to clear the area outside the protest encampment and there have been no large-scale arrests on either side.


UCLA would ‘rather see us dead than divest’: Palestine solidarity camp

The People’s City Council, a collective of activist organizations, has published a statement on behalf of the UCLA Palestine solidarity camp. It said the encampment was attacked with gas canisters, pepper spray, fireworks and bricks overnight.

According to the statement, external security hired by the university watched and filmed the attack while law enforcement did not intervene.



‘UCLA attack went on for two hours’

We’ve spoken to Sean Beckner-Carmitchel, a videographer and a writer, who witnessed the attack by counterprotesters on the pro-Palestinian activists.

Here’s his account: “Late at night, a group of about 100 counter-protesters to the Gaza solidarity encampent at the University of California Los Angeles began to throw fireworks, began to throw sticks.

“I saw a few very large objects being thrown at the camp. They began to yell things in support of Israel, but I also heard racial epithets towards Black people, I heard quite a bit of language which implies sexual violence, as well as threats of violence.

“It went on for about two hours; there was no response from the UCLA police nor there was any response from the Los Angeles police department of the California Highway Patrol.

“After about two hours, they did arrive and counter-protesters eventually left.”

Private security at UCLA ‘retreated’ amid violence: Expert

Brian Levin, the founder of the Center for the Study of Hate and Extremism and professor emeritus at California State University, has spoken to Al Jazeera about the violent scenes at UCLA overnight.

He said private security hired by the university was supposed to keep apart the two groups of protesters.

However, once the pro-Israel counterprotesters attacked the pro-Palestinian encampment, the security detail “retreated”, he said, adding, “They were overwhelmed. There was anarchy for hours, and that’s terrible.”