Police clear pro-Palestinian encampment from USC campus, no arrests reported

Police arrived on the University of South Carolina (USC) campus Sunday morning and cleared away a pro-Palestinian encampment after the school issued a warning to demonstrators.

According to Annenberg Media student reporters, the campus was closed as more than 100 police officers dressed in riot gear encircled the campsite.

This came after the USC official account posted a warning on X early morning, that read, "If you are in the centre of campus, please leave. People who don't leave will be arrested."

Over an hour later, the university announced in another post that the campsite had been evacuated. "The camp at UPC has been removed. "The campus remains closed," the USC Twitter account tweeted on X.

Joel Curran, Senior Vice President of Communications, said in a statement, "Earlier today, the University of Southern California Department of Public Safety (DPS) successfully removed the illegal encampment rebuilt on the university's campus. It was necessary to request the Los Angeles Police Department to respond to provide security as this was carried out peacefully. No arrests have been reported. We want to thank LAPD for assisting DPS in clearing the encampment and restoring normalcy for students and community as quickly and safely as possible. We will share more information with our community later today."

This comes after the school issued a warning to protesters that their encampment breached school regulations and must be removed.

According to livestream footage from student journalists, the campsite had dispersed as police drew a line to take remaining protesters away and prevent them from re-entering the area. The campsite had restarted after the LAPD detained 93 individuals on April 24.

Student demonstrations have taken place at USC, in response to the war in Gaza and the administration's decision to postpone the valedictorian's commencement speech, which expressed solidarity for Palestinians. The institution made the decision in mid-April, citing safety concerns after receiving threats. Some Jewish organisations had questioned the student's selection as a speaker.

(With inputs from agencies)