UCLA police arrest 25 at anti-Israel protest; rabbi accosted, called a ‘pedophile’
Videos show pro-Palestinian demonstrators assaulting a security guard and journalist, telling university administrator he is ‘not safe’
Police thwarted on Monday attempts by anti-Israel demonstrators to set up a new encampment at the University of California, Los Angeles, where officers cleared a previous camp this spring after it was attacked by counter-protesters following mounting accusations of antisemitic harassment against Jewish students.
Out of the approximately 100 people who participated in the encampment, 25 were arrested for willful disruption of university operations and one for interfering with an officer, UCLA police said in a statement. The individuals were cited, issued 14-day orders to stay away from UCLA and then released.
The demonstrators repeatedly tried to set up tents, canopies and barriers as they moved to various locations, disrupting nearby final exams. The group also damaged a fountain, spray-painted brick walkways, tampered with fire safety equipment, damaged patio furniture, stripped wire from electrical fixtures and vandalized vehicles, the statement said.
Video clips from UCLA showed masked anti-Israel protesters accosting Rabbi Dovid Gurevich and calling him a “pedophile,” attacking a security guard, assaulting a journalist and yelling at a university administrator that he is “not safe.”
“I can’t believe this is happening. In America. In 2024,” ADL chief Jonathan Greenblatt wrote on X in response to video of the rabbi being accosted. “This will get worse — much, much worse — unless good people on all sides step up, speak out and start taking action.”
Anti-Israel protest camps have sprung up on university campuses across the US and in Europe as students demand their universities stop doing business with Israel or companies that support its war efforts. Organizers have sought to amplify calls to end Israel’s war against Hamas in Gaza, which they claim is a “genocide” against the Palestinians.
Like other leading American universities, UCLA has been repeatedly roiled by pro-Palestinian protests against Israel and the university administration’s handling of the situation, with Jewish students saying they have been made to feel unsafe due to antisemitic statements and banners at the demonstrations.
Second, UCLA Chabad Rabbi Dovid Gurevich, who was called a “pedophile rabbi,” was attacked and harassed: pic.twitter.com/KEbECbTM5u
— Steve McGuire (@sfmcguire79) June 11, 2024
As the unrest grew on the UCLA campus, a pro-Palestinian encampment was attacked by counter-protesters, with no immediate response from police, and dozens were then arrested as the camp was cleared. The episode led to reassignment of the campus police chief and creation of a new campus safety office. A subsequent attempt to set up a new camp was also blocked.
Monday’s protest comes just days before University of California regents are scheduled to meet at UCLA and this coming weekend’s commencement ceremonies.
Demonstrations against Israel, along with instances of antisemitism, have skyrocketed in the US since Hamas-led terrorists rampaged through southern Israel on October 7, killing some 1,200 people and taking 251 hostage to Gaza in a devastating shock attack that triggered the war in Gaza.
