Police break up pro-Palestinian student protest in Berlin as demonstrations spread across Europe

Pro-Palestinian activists occupy campuses across Europe, sparking protests and police intervention in multiple countries.

Berlin police on May 7 broke up a protest by several hundred pro-Palestinian activists who had occupied a courtyard on Berlin’s Free University earlier in the day. The protesters had put up about 20 tents and formed a human chain around the tents.

Police called on the students via loudspeakers to leave the campus.

Most protesters had covered their faces with medical masks and had draped kufiyahs around their heads, shouting slogans like “viva, viva Palestina.”

In recent days, students have held protests or set up encampments in Finland, Denmark, Italy, Spain, France and Britain, following earlier protests that have roiled U.S. campuses.

Earlier, Dutch police arrested about 125 activists as they broke up a pro-Palestinian demonstration camp at the University of Amsterdam, as protests that have roiled campuses in the United States spread across Europe.

Students held protests or set up encampments in Finland, Denmark, Germany, Italy, Spain and in Britain. There have also been demonstrations in recent days at campuses in France.

Amsterdam police said on the social media platform X that their action was “necessary to restore order” after protests turned violent. There were no immediate reports of injuries.