Washington:
Columbia, the prestigious New York university at the heart of U.S. campus protests against the war in Gaza, announced Monday that it has canceled its main ceremony for graduating students next week.
The Ivy League institution said it would “forgo the university-wide ceremony scheduled for May 15” and would instead host a series of smaller events.
“We are committed to giving our students the celebration they deserve and want,” Columbia announced. “Smaller-scale school celebrations are the most meaningful to them and their families.”
“We will focus our resources on those school ceremonies and on making them safe, respectful and smooth. A lot of effort is already being made to achieve that goal,” the university said.
Demonstrations against Israel's war against Hamas in Gaza have rocked campuses across the United States for weeks, prompting a crackdown, mass arrests and a White House directive to restore order.
Last week, police evicted protesters occupying a Columbia University building and cleared an unauthorized encampment on the campus lawn.
President Joe Biden broke his silence on the protests on Thursday, insisting that “order must prevail.”
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