University of Calgary pro-Palestinian protesters pack up encampment after police threaten removal

Most of the large group of pro-Palestinian protesters who had set up an encampment on the University of Calgary campus agreed to pack up and leave moments before police, with shields and riot gear, were set to begin forcibly removing them.

The police line appeared set to begin marching when one of the protesters stepped forward and told the rest of the group that, if they left, none of them would be arrested.

After some initial pushback, many of the protesters began breaking down and packing up their tents, which had been pitched outside MacEwan Hall — the home of the university's student centre.

A smaller group of protesters has remained on scene.

As the packing began, a Calgary Police Service (CPS) member assured one of the protest leaders that no one would be arrested if they left.

They were also told they could return to the university on Friday, provided they don't bring any "encampments, barricades or obstructions."

Police and protest organizers discuss breaking up a pro-Palestinian encampment late Thursday on the University of Calgary campus. The protesters packed up their supplies and left with no arrests. Most of them said they would be back on Friday. (Jo Horwood/CBC)

Earlier Thursday evening, in a post to the social platform X, CPS said they were notified at 6:30 p.m. MT on Thursday by campus security that protesters had set up tents on the south lawn of MacEwan Hall

The post said the protesters were asked to leave and, when they refused, were informed they were trespassing. The protesters still refused to leave, CPS said, and police were then called in for assistance.

WATCH | Unverified video from the scene:

According to the student-led group behind the encampment, it has set up on campus to get the attention of the university's senior leadership, including president Edward McCauley and interim provost Penny Werthner.

Students want divestment

Like other recent university protests, those involved say students at the U of C are demonstrating to demand officials disclose and sever any ties the school has with Israel.

"We've been asking the U of C to review their investments, to make their investments more public, to make sure that we know what's going on, where the money's going, our tuition money," said Mohammad Arhaam Mukati, president and co-founder of the U of C's Palestinian Advocacy Club, who is involved with the encampment.

"They're not asking for much. What they are asking for is crucial. It's important. It's significant."

The list of demands is outlined in the statement issued by the organizing groups. They are asking the U of C to disclose all of its direct and indirect investments involving Israel.

They are also calling for a "complete and continued divestment [from] corporations that develop military technology in order to profit from wars globally, all corporations that play a role in suppressing Indigenous peoples globally and all corporations that have links to regimes under investigation by the International Criminal Court."

Further, the organizers are urging the university to adopt a definition of anti-Palestinian racism on campus with a zero-tolerance policy, and support Palestinian students' mental wellness and academic success.