UPDATE - About 200 arrested at pro-Palestine demonstrations on US campuses

UPDATES WITH PRO-PALESTINIAN PROTESTER ARRESTS ON US CAMPUSES; CHANGES HEAD, DECK, LEDE

By Alperen Aktas and Serife Cetin

ISTANBUL, NEW YORK (AA) — About 200 people were detained or arrested on US college campuses Saturday as authorities continued to crack down on pro-Palestinian demonstrations.

Student groups resisted officials trying to dismantle their encampments, resulting in clashes, while some universities claimed that non-students were present at the demonstrations.

At Northeastern University in Boston, about 100 protesters were detained by police as officials cleared an "unauthorized encampment," stating that professional organizers not affiliated with the university had joined the demonstration.

"What began as a student demonstration two days ago, was infiltrated by professional organizers with no affiliation to Northeastern," the university said in a statement on X.

Similarly, at Indiana University Bloomington, at least 23 demonstrators were arrested after setting up a protest encampment, with various charges, according to the university's police department.

"Twenty-three individuals were transported to the Monroe County Justice Center for charges ranging from criminal trespass to resisting law enforcement," Indiana University police said in a statement.

In another incident at Arizona State University (ASU), 72 demonstrators were arrested by campus police for trespassing after setting up an encampment, with the university noting that most of the protesters were not affiliated with the university.

"A group of people — most of whom were not ASU students, faculty or staff — created an encampment and demonstration that continued until well past 11 p.m. when the group was instructed repeatedly to disperse," it added.

- Protest at White House Correspondents' Dinner

Meanwhile, pro-Palestine demonstrators protested the annual White House Correspondents' Dinner on Saturday, denouncing the Biden administration's handling of the war in Gaza and media coverage of the conflict that has killed over 34,000 Palestinians.

Organized by US activist group CodePink, the protest took place outside the Washington Hilton hotel, where the dinner was being held.

Demonstrators chanted, "Shame on you," as officials, journalists, and celebrities entered the venue.

"The Correspondents' Dinner is nothing more than a celebration and endorsement of the administration's actions. It is not journalism. It is complicity," the group said on X.

A display of blood-stained press vests with the names of journalists killed in Gaza and the occupied West Bank was set up on the street across from the hotel.

In April, a group of Palestinian journalists issued a letter addressing their colleagues to publicly boycott the annual dinner, where US President Joe Biden delivered a speech to about 3,000 participants.

A total of 141 journalists have been killed since October in Gaza.

Israel has waged a brutal offensive on Gaza since a cross-border attack by the Palestinian group, Hamas, on Oct. 7, which Tel Aviv said killed less than 1,200 people.

Nearly 34,400 Palestinians have since been killed, mostly women and children, and over 77,400 injured amid mass destruction and severe shortages of necessities.

Israel is accused of genocide at the International Court of Justice. An interim ruling in January ordered Tel Aviv to stop genocidal acts and take measures to guarantee that humanitarian assistance is provided to civilians in Gaza.