New York University students protesting for Palestine briefly took over the lobby of the Bobst Library building Friday afternoon, unfurling banners and demanding that the institution divest from Israel.
“We have deoccupied and reclaimed this space in honor fo the Diana Tamari Sabbagh Library,” students said in a statement, after a building destroyed during the war in Gaza at the end of November.
The move came one week after police cleared a nearby encampment of NYU students and is the third such occupation led by NYU students since April 21.
About 20 students participated in the protest in the library during the height of final exams season.
“The library is not only a place for study (it is our finals period), it is a setting in which we hold exams, including exams scheduled for this afternoon. It is impermissible under the University’s rules to disrupt academic activities or to interfere with other students’ academic work,” NYU spokesperson John Beckman wrote in a statement.
All students involved would be subject to disciplinary proceedings, Beckman added.
“We are disappointed that a group of students would be so insensitive to the rights of other students. We are working to bring the situation to a close as quickly as possible.”
Campus officials initially said that the library was closed, but later reversed the directive to say that it would remain open for the final exam period.
Protesters left the library by 6 p.m., the spokesman said.
