UT Austin suspends Pro-Palestinian student group after anti-Israel protest
A Pro-Palestinian student group at the University of Texas at Austin shared on Friday that it was placed on interim suspension following the arrest of several students earlier this week.
The Palestine Solidarity Committee (PSC) shared on their Instagram Friday that the university had suspended the organization, alleging the school "has repeatedly changed protest policies and been deliberately vague about these changes" since the on-campus protests began.
"UT’s suspension of the Palestine Solidarity Committee is an attack on free speech to distract from and enable israel’s genocidal campaign against the Palestinian people!," the organization wrote on Instagram. "While Jay Hartzell and Greg Abbot authorized Texas State Troopers, Austin Police, and UT police to violently attack and arrest protesters on campus, Palestinians continue to live in a state of emergency that UT refuses to recognize."
PSC was reportedly notified of the suspension Thursday, according to CBS Austin.
A university spokesperson told CBS Austin the interim suspension came as a result of PSC allegedly violating institutional rules based on student conduct and integrity. The suspension means the organization will not be able to host any on-campus events, reserve rooms, and work with faculty, the outlet reported.
Fox News Digital reached out to PSC and the university for additional comment.
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The suspension comes several days after more than 30 people were arrested on UT Austin's campus during an anti-Israel protest on Wednesday.
The Austin Police Department (APD) and Texas Department of Public Safety (DPS) were observed making arrests while some officers monitored the protests on horseback.
The group was heard chanting "APD, KKK, IDF / they're all the same" and "Pigs go home!" to officers at the scene. DPS told Fox News Digital the arrests were made "in order to prevent any unlawful assembly and to support UT Police in maintaining the peace by arresting anyone engaging in any sort of criminal activity, including criminal trespass."
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UT Austin President Jay Hartzell released a statement that same day defending the university's decision to shut down the protest.
"Our rules matter and they will be enforced," he said in a lengthy statement that recognized that there was "a lot of emotion surrounding these events."
"This has been a challenging day for many," Hartzell wrote in a statement addressed to the UT-Austin community. "We have witnessed much activity we normally do not experience on our campus, and there is understandably a lot of emotion surrounding these events."
Fox News' Andrea Vacchiano, Bryan Preston, and Lawrence Richard contributed to this report.