Pro-Palestinian protesters arrested and suspended after barricading themselves in Stanford University president’s office

More than a dozen pro-Palestinian protesters at Stanford University were arrested — and some were immediately suspended from school — on Wednesday after briefly taking over the president’s office, authorities said.

As part of the latest provocative campus action calling for divestment from Israel following the country’s war with Hamas, students and alumni entered President Richard Saller’s office around 5:30 a.m. PT, according to the group’s spokesman.

They vowed “remain in the building and refuse to leave until their demands are met,” the spokesman said in a statement.

But within three hours the building seemed to be back under the control of the university after campus police and Santa Clara County sheriff’s officers took action, officials said.

“This morning, a group of individuals illegally entered Building 10, which houses the offices of the President and Provost.” said Stanford spokesman Dee Mostofi. “Police arrested 13 people and the building was evacuated.”

The school immediately took action against the students involved.

“A public safety officer was injured after being pushed by protesters who were obstructing a transportation vehicle. There was significant damage to the interior of Building 10 and to the exterior of the buildings in the courtyard,” Mostofi continued.

“We are appalled that our students have chosen to take this action and will work with law enforcement to ensure they face the full consequences allowed by law. All students arrested will be immediately suspended and if any of them are seniors, they will not be allowed to graduate.”

It was not immediately clear whether the designation “no graduation possible” meant that students would be excluded from graduation ceremonies or expelled from school entirely without being able to prove they had completed a degree.

Wednesday is the last day of classes for the spring semester. Graduation ceremonies will take place on June 15 and 16.

“We have consistently stressed the importance of constructive engagement and peaceful protest when there is disagreement,” Mostofi said. “This was not a peaceful protest and actions like this morning’s have no place at Stanford.”

The protesters are demanding that the school divest itself of all financial interests in companies “that provide material and logistical support to Israel’s current military campaign,” the group said.

In the spring, college students across the country staged protests on their campuses, demanding that their institutions withdraw any investments they believe are helping Israeli forces in their military operations in the Gaza Strip.

Since Hamas invaded Israel on October 7, Israeli forces have been attacking the Palestinian enclave.

The most famous action against Israel on a US campus was carried out by students at Columbia University who occupied a key building, Hamilton Hall.

The protests led to campus authorities calling in the New York City Police Department to retake the building and clear a protester camp. The on-campus graduation ceremonies had to be moved to a football stadium 100 blocks away from campus.