Dozens arrested in US as student protests over Gaza spread across country
Chaos engulfed campuses across the United States as pro-Palestinian student protests spread to universities across the length and breadth of this country.
A movement which started at Columbia University on the east coast has now spread to the north, south and west.
At the University of Southern California in Los Angeles at least 93 people were arrested during a volatile three-hour standoff between protesters and the police.
A protester is detained at the University of Southern California. Pic: AP
Pic: Reuters
One young woman, wearing an Arab scarf, threw a bottle of water at officers and was tackled to the ground before being handcuffed and taken to a waiting police van.
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Heavily armed officers were sent to disperse pro-Palestine student activists who are calling for a ceasefire in Gaza.
Others, who had formed a protest circle after police issued a dispersal order, were handcuffed one by one and frogmarched off campus by Los Angeles police officers.
Dozens of people were detained by police
The day had started relatively peacefully as hundreds of students gathered on the main lawn on campus.
Police did intervene to remove a number of tents that had been erected, but people holding signs which called for a ceasefire in Gaza soon filled the space.
As classes finished for the day, police issued a dispersal order, telling protesters over a loudspeaker that they had 10 minutes to clear the area or they would be arrested.
A group of at least 50 students remained, linking arms and chanting, “free, free, Palestine”. Some used a black marker pen to scribble on their arms the number of a helpline to call from prison.
Police officers turned out in force. Pic Reuters
“Are you scared of being arrested?” I asked one young woman. “No,” she replied. “I think the children in Gaza are more scared than me.”
I asked another why she feels so passionate about taking a stand on a war unfolding more than seven thousand miles away. “We know that we’re on the right side of this right now,” she said, “and if we’re not going to do this, then who is?”
The students here say they have two core aims. They are demanding that their university cuts all financial ties with Israel and that their country stops sending them weapons.
Amid the peaceful chants are potentially inflammatory songs about the state of Israel.
I asked one young man if he is concerned Jewish students may feel threatened and isolated on their own campus.
“None of the chants or anything that we’ve said is inherently antisemitic,” he said, “nor is the call for the liberation of Palestine inherently antisemitic”.
Read more:
More than 100 arrested as campus protests spread
Demonstrations are expected to continue across the US
As night fell, police here concluded that the best way to end today’s standoff was with more force.
My team watched as an officer pushed one young man to the floor and another woman was pushed back with a police baton.
They may have brought the protests to an end today but there is every chance they will erupt again in the days to come.
Former US president Joe Biden has prostate cancer, his office has said.
The statement said Mr Biden, who left the White House in January, is reviewing options for treatment with his physicians.
It read: “Last week, President Joe Biden was seen for a new finding of a prostate nodule after experiencing increasing urinary symptoms.
“On Friday, he was diagnosed with prostate cancer, characterised by a Gleason score of 9 (Grade Group 5) with metastasis to the bone.
“While this represents a more aggressive form of the disease, the cancer appears to be hormone-sensitive which allows for effective management.
“The President and his family are reviewing treatment options with his physicians.”
File pic: Reuters
According to Cancer Research UK, a Gleason score of 9 means the cancerous cells “look very abnormal” and the disease is “likely to grow quickly”.
A source familiar with Mr Biden and his family’s thinking has told Sky’s US partner network, NBC News, that the former president is considering “multiple treatment options” – including hormone treatment for the cancer.
They added he is at his home in Wilmington, Delaware, and that as of now, it is unclear where the former president will be treated.
Mr Biden, 82, was the oldest person to ever serve as president, with concerns about his health raised regularly during his campaign for re-election last year.
After a poor debate against Donald Trump in June, he withdrew from the 2024 election and endorsed his vice president Kamala Harris.
In February 2023, he had a skin lesion removed from his chest that was a basal cell carcinoma, a common form of skin cancer.
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A Mexican navy ship has hit the Brooklyn Bridge during a promotional tour in New York City.
The New York Fire Department said authorities were responding to injuries but had no details about how many people might have been hurt or whether they were on the vessel or on the bridge.
Sky’s US partner network NBC News reports that at least three people were seriously injured in the incident.
The Mexican navy said in a post on X that the Cuauhtemoc, an academy training vessel, was damaged in the accident, which has prevented it from continuing its voyage.
Eyewitness video of the collision posted online showed the mast of the ship, which was flying a large Mexican flag, scraping the underneath of the bridge.
Pic: AP
The vessel then drifted toward the edge of the river as onlookers scrambled away from shore.
The Mexican navy said the status of personnel and material was under review by naval and local authorities, which were providing assistance.
The Cuauhtemoc is about 297ft long and 40ft wide, according to the Mexican navy. It sailed for the first time in 1982.
Pic: AP
Each year, it sets out at the end of classes at the naval military school to finish cadets’ training.
It left the Mexican port of Acapulco, on the Pacific coast, on 6 April with 277 people onboard, the navy said at the time.
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One person has died in a bomb explosion near a reproductive health clinic in California, authorities have said.
The incident took place in Palm Springs, a city two hours east of Los Angeles, and is being investigated as a possible car explosion.
The city’s mayor Ron DeHarte said one person died in the blast, adding that the bomb was “either in or near” a vehicle. The deceased’s identity is not known, Palm Springs police said.
Dr Maher Abdallah, who runs the American Reproductive Centers clinic, told the Associated Press his facility was damaged but all staff were safe and accounted for.
The explosion damaged the office space where the practice conducts patient consultations, but the IVF lab and stored embryos were unharmed, he added.
“I really have no clue what happened,” he said. “Thank God today happened to be a day that we have no patients.”
Debris covers the ground after the explosion. Pic: ABC7 Los Angeles/AP
In a statement posted on Facebook the clinic said it was “heartbroken” to learn someone died in the explosion and added: “Our deepest condolences go out to the individuals and families affected.”
It continued: “Our mission has always been to help build families, and in times like these, we are reminded of just how fragile and precious life is.
“In the face of this tragedy, we remain committed to creating hope – because we believe that healing begins with community, compassion, and care.
The clinic will be fully operational on Monday, it added.
“This moment has shaken us – but it has not stopped us. We will continue to serve with strength, love, and the hope that brings new life into the world,” the statement concluded.
Pic: ABC7 Los Angeles/AP
The Palm Springs city government said in a post on Facebook that the explosion happened on North Indian Canyon Drive, near East Tachevah Drive, before 11am local time (6pm GMT).
A burned-out car can be seen in a parking lot behind the building in aerial footage.
The blast caved in the clinic’s roof and blew debris across four lanes of the road.
Another person said he was inside a cannabis dispensary nearby when he felt a massive explosion.
Nima Tabrizi said: “The building just shook, and we go outside and there’s massive cloud smoke.”
Investigators from the FBI and the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives are travelling to the scene to help assess what happened.
California governor Gavin Newsom has been briefed on the explosion, his press office said.
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