Tufts warns encamped students: Leave or face discipline

Tufts University issued an ultimatum Tuesday to the student protesters camped on its campus: Clear out or face the consequences.

The university said the pro-Palestinian demonstrators, who are pressing for a ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas war and for the school to divest from Israeli firms, must break camp and leave the school's common spaces. If not, they could face school discipline or forcible removal.

"Tufts students who do not vacate the space will be subject to the Community Standards processes which may result in suspension or other sanctions. For seniors, this may include not participating in senior week activities or Commencement," the school said in a statement released Tuesday afternoon.

Tufts Daily, the school's student-run newspaper, reported that Tuft's legal department sent a message to the Students for Justice in Palestine at Tufts saying anyone occupying the encampment area is trespassing and subject to arrest.

Campus police started locking buildings along the academic quad at 5 p.m., according to the Daily.

Tufts sent an email early Wednesday to local news organizations informing reporters that media, per its standing policy, is not allowed on non-public areas of campus or in university buildings to cover the encampment and protests.

Tufts said it agreed to have protest leaders meet with the school's president, the chief investment officer and members of the board of trustees, provided that they clear their tents and agree not to disrupt the upcoming commencement ceremony on campus scheduled for May 19.

"This offer, which remains on the table, was rejected, and the meeting ended without an agreement," the statement read.

Earlier in the day, the Students for Justice in Palestine at Tufts posted a message on Instagram saying the negotiations had failed and that the administration said they would break up the camp with a "heavy hand."

The Tufts ultimatum comes on the same day protesters broke their camp at UMass Amherst, and days after police were called in to clear out encampments at Northeastern University and Emerson College. Similar protest setups remain in place at Harvard University and MIT.

The roughly 220 people arrested at the Emerson and Northeastern protests face court proceedings in the coming days. According to its executive director, the Massachusetts chapter of the National Lawyers Guild negotiated an agreement with the courts to dismiss charges against people charged with "disorderly [conduct], disturbing the peace, trespassing, or unlawful assembly" once they complete community service. Others will be arraigned on more serious charges.