Protesters occupied a lawn at Columbia University in a pro-Palestine encampment on Thursday, 18 April. Students have been demonstrating on campus since Wednesday when university president Nemat Shafik faced a congressional hearing on the Ivy League school's response to antisemitism and conflicts on campus following the October 7 Hamas attack on Israel. Ms Shafik authorised police to begin clear the encampment from the South Lawn of Morningside campus before dozens were arrested. Columbia introduced a policy in February approving specific locations for protests, which need advanced notice. Protesters arrested Thursday were calling for the university to divest from corporations they said were profiting from Israeli military action in Gaza.