Top US colleges struggle with widening Gaza protests

US colleges are struggling with the spread of protests against the war in Gaza with the movement now spreading from Columbia and Yale to other universities.

Police moved to break up a protest at New York University and made a number of arrests. 

Dozens of students were arrested at Yale earlier in the day while Columbia cancelled in-person classes. 

Demonstrations and heated debates about the Israel-Gaza war and free speech have rocked US campuses since the Hamas attack on 7 October – and the war since. 

In the US, students on both sides say there has been a rise in both antisemitic and Islamophobic incidents.

When asked about the campus protests on Monday, President Joe Biden said he condemned “the antisemitic protests” as well as “those who don’t understand what’s going on with the Palestinians”.