Hunter
05/06/24
Local law enforcement and Iowa State Patrol officers took less than a half-hour to shut down a pro-Palestine encampment being set up on the University of Iowa Campus.
The Daily Iowan reports the encampment that went up in Hubbard Park was first posted on the Instagram account, @uiowa.action.for.palestine, a network of students, residents, UI alumni, and staff organizing for the liberation of Palestine. The account is not affiliated with the UI.
KCJJ learned that the group arrived shortly after 7:30am Monday and began setting up their encampment before law enforcement arrived and dispersed the gathering.
Protesters reportedly put their equipment into at least two cars and left the site. Broken tents, mesh fencing material, tin roofing material, and other items were left behind and examined by law enforcement.
The group said in an Instagram post that approximately 9 officers showed up with UI Assistant VP and Director of Public Safety Mark Bullock. They claimed the UIPD is “infamous for its tracking and surveillance.” They additionally alleged that many of the tracking technologies they rely on to do so are “a product of Israeli technology that has been tried and tested on occupied Palestinians.”
The post featured the headline “The Liberated Zone has been Disbanded. For now…we will be back. Nothing can stop the revolution.”
Another activist group, Iowa City Students for Justice in Palestine, organized a three-day protest on the Pentacrest over the weekend. They had pop-up tents and participated in discussions, prayer, and did art projects. However, the group tore down and dispersed each day after 7pm. No incidents were reported.