Pro-Palestinian protesters barricaded inside college president’s office – but their occupation was short-lived

(Daily Caller News Foundation) – Police arrested over a dozen pro-Palestinian protesters Wednesday after they barricaded themselves inside Stanford University President Richard Saller’s office, according to NBC News.

The protesters took over the building around 5:30 a.m. this morning and a spokesperson for the group claimed they would “remain inside the building” and refuse “to leave until their demands are met,” according to NBC News. University police and Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office deployed officers to the building three hours later, arresting 13 of the protesters and finding “extensive damage” inside.

“This morning, a group of individuals unlawfully entered Building 10, which houses the offices of the president and provost. Law enforcement has arrested 13 individuals, and the building has been cleared,” Dee Mostofi, a university spokesperson, said in a statement to NBC News. “There has been extensive damage to the interior and exterior of the building. No other campus operations have been affected at this time.”

The protesters demanded that the school divest from companies and organizations that support or work with Israel, which is engaged in a war with the terrorist organization Hamas, according to NBC News. Pro-Palestinian protesters made similar demands in November after organizing a weeks-long sit-in protest only weeks after Hamas killed over 1,400 Israelis in a surprise attack on Oct. 7.

Universities have been grappling for weeks with pro-Palestinian protesters who have erected encampments and taken over buildings in order to get schools to agree to divest from Israel. Columbia University police broke up another encampment Sunday during the school’s annual alumni reunion, according to CBS News.

Stanford and the Stanford police department did not immediately respond to the Daily Caller News Foundation’s request for comment.