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Tensions arising from an anti-Israel encampment at Wayne State University in Detroit forced the school to announce on Tuesday that classes would be held remotely until further notice.
Protesters set up the encampment on campus last week to demand the university’s divestment from the Jewish state.
“Due to an ongoing public safety issue, Wayne State University will transition to remote operations, effective immediately until further notice,” the university wrote in an alert issued to students and faculty early Tuesday morning.
While it’s unclear whether the university has plans to clear the encampment, Matt Lockwood, the university’s associate vice president of communications, told Fox News Digital that school officials have asked the organizers to remove the encampment several times. He said that protesters have so far declined to do so.
POLICE CLEAR ANTI-ISRAEL ENCAMPMENT AT UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
An anti-Israel encampment is shown Tuesday on the campus of Wayne State University in Detroit. (AP Photo/Mike Householder)
Lockwood said that university leaders are open to meeting with leaders of the protest group, though nothing has been scheduled. As of Tuesday afternoon, Lockwood said there were between 30 and 35 tents on campus.
Other universities across the country have removed similar encampments in the wake of the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. Last week, police cleared an anti-Israel encampment at the University of Michigan after it posed a fire risk.
Lockwood told the Detroit Free Press over the weekend that the fire marshal was concerned over the accumulation of combustible materials.
The school suspended in-person classes and encouraged staff to work remotely to avoid any problems with the encampment. (AP Photo/Mike Householder)
Lockwood also said that some walkways near the encampment have been blocked and that “there are a small number of occupants that have challenged public safety.”
Lockwood told the newspaper that many of the approximately 40 protesters he saw did not appear to be students, though he added that it was difficult to tell because many were wearing masks.
The school described the encampment as an “ongoing public safety issue.” (FOX2 Detroit WJBK)
The university said that students will receive further information about class arrangements from their instructors via email or Canvas, an online course management system.
All on-campus events were also canceled until further notice, the school said.
