The country launched a probe in March 2021 into WhatsApp's privacy policy, which allowed data sharing with Facebook and its units, sparking global backlash
world3 days ago
Pro-Palestinian protests that have rocked US campuses for weeks were more muted on Friday after a series of clashes with police, mass arrests and a stern White House directive to restore order.
Police in Manhattan cleared an encampment at New York University after sunrise, with video posted to social media by an official showing protesters exiting their tents and dispersing when ordered by loudspeaker.
The scene appeared relatively calm compared to crackdowns at other campuses around the country — and some worldwide — where protests over Israel's war in Gaza have multiplied in recent weeks.
Stay up to date with the latest news. Follow KT on WhatsApp Channels.
University administrators, who have tried to balance the right to protest and complaints of violence and hate speech, have increasingly called on police to clear out the protesters ahead of year-end exams and graduation ceremonies — and some clashes with counter-protesters.
More than 2,000 arrests have been made in the past two weeks across the United States, some during violent confrontations with police, giving rise to accusations of over-use of force.
President Joe Biden, who has faced pressure from all political sides over the Israel-Hamas war, gave his first expansive remarks on the protests on Thursday, saying that "order must prevail".
"We are not an authoritarian nation where we silence people or squash dissent," Biden said in a televised statement from the White House.
"But neither are we a lawless country. We're a civil society, and order must prevail."
His remarks came hours after police moved in on demonstrators at University of California, Los Angeles, which had seen a violent confrontation when counter-protesters attacked a fortified encampment there.
A large police contingent forcibly cleared the sprawling encampment early Thursday while flashbangs were launched to disperse crowds gathered outside.
Schools officials said that over 200 people were arrested.
On the opposite US coast on Thursday, protesters at New Jersey's Rutgers University agreed to take down their camp after reaching a compromise with administrators, like a similar deal at other institutions, including Brown University.
Republicans have accused Biden of being soft on what they say is anti-Semitic sentiment among the protesters, while he faces opposition in his own party for his strong support for Israel's war on Gaza.
"There should be no place on any campus, no place in America for anti-Semitism, or threats of violence against Jewish students," Biden said.
Education Secretary Miguel Cardona echoed the condemnation in a letter to university leaders on Friday and pledging to investigate reports of anti-Semitism "aggressively," CNN reported.
Meanwhile, similar student protests have popped up in countries around the world, including in Australia, France, Mexico and Canada.
In Paris, police moved in to clear students staging a sit-in at the Sciences Po university.
An encampment has grown at Canada's prestigious McGill University, where administrators on Wednesday demanded it be taken down "without delay."
However, police had yet to take action against the site as of Friday morning.
ALSO READ:
The country launched a probe in March 2021 into WhatsApp's privacy policy, which allowed data sharing with Facebook and its units, sparking global backlash
world3 days ago
This time around, Trump wants the Senate to give up that gatekeeping role and allow him to make 'recess appointments'
world3 days ago
Police allege the offences took place between 2001 and 2019 against 8 victims; the youngest was 17 at the time of the offence
world3 days ago
The two countries have a mutual defence treaty dating back to 1951, which could be invoked if either side came under attack, including in the South China Sea
world4 days ago
Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu conferred the Grand Commander of the Order of Niger on Narendra Modi in Abuja on Sunday
world4 days ago
The titleholder's winning answer focused on using each individual's strengths
world4 days ago
The suspects would be interrogated jointly with the Shin Bet internal security agency, police said
world4 days ago
The attack took place at the Wuxi Vocational Institute of Arts and Technology in Jiangsu province
world5 days ago