Western University officials warn of 'unsafe behaviour' as pro-Palestinian protest enters 3rd week

Western University officials say they're worried about what they call "unsafe and illegal behaviour" at a pro-Palestinian protest that has set up camp on campus and is entering its third week. 

"The encampment at Western is increasingly concerning. Incidents of unsafe and illegal behaviour are mounting, and the university's core principles are being compromised," school officials wrote in a statement published to an internal website Wednesday.

"It is unlawful and unsafe, and now is the time for it to end." 

The tents outside the student community centre are among numerous other encampment protests at universities across North America that began as a response to deaths as the Israel-Hamas war rages on in Gaza. Protesters say they want the schools to divest from companies that support Israel. 

For three weeks, CBC News has requested interviews with Western officials, including vice-provost of students John Doerksen and president Alan Shepard, about the protest, but those requests have been denied by communication staff who field inquiries, with no reasons given. 

In the statement, the university says there have been "several incidents of theft, vandalism and assaultive behaviour as well as allegations of hate speech originating from someone with ties to the encampment."

The incidents are being investigated, officials said, and London police have been contacted. 

Meanwhile, support has grown among faculty for the students who are in the encampment. A group calling itself Western Faculty for Palestine says it supports the students' right to protest and condemns "all forms of repression, incrimination, and retribution that may be directed at [the protesters' while the Liberation Zone is operating or any time in the future." 

Protesters and university administrators are expected to meet Thursday.