Pro-Palestinian demonstrators have set up an encampment at King’s College Circle at the University of Toronto, calling on the university to sever its ties with the Israeli government and for a ceasefire in the ongoing war in Gaza.
Students arrived under the cover of darkness around 4 a.m. Thursday to dismantle a portion of the fence that had been erected by the university to prevent the type of encampments that have sprung up at other universities across the country and in the United States.
The group Occupy for Palestine says the occupation comes after several months of trying to engage with university officials to discuss the student body’s collective concerns.
In a statement released on Thursday, the University says while it respects the rights of members to assemble and protest they must not interfere with the ability of staff and students to work and learn on campus.
“Our preference is to start with dialogue. Those who contravene university policy or the law risk the consequences set out in various laws and policies such as the Code of Student Conduct, which could include suspension,” the statement reads in part.
In a letter previously sent to students, the university warned that any “unauthorized activities” such as encampments would be considered trespassing.
Private security and campus police are on the scene, however, they are currently monitoring the situation from a distance and have not engaged the protesters.
Similar protest camps have been set up on four Canadian university campuses – three in B.C and at Montreal’s McGill University – as well as at scores of post-secondary schools in the United States.