BLACKSBURG, Va. — Demonstrators were arrested after a Pro-Palestine protest on Virginia Tech's campus on Sunday.
According to the Virginia Tech (VT) official news site, the protesters began gathering on the lawn of the Graduate Life Center on Friday morning which is when university officials told protesters that the gathering violated University Policy 5000 for facility use and events.
The university says they "were able to maintain a safe and peaceful environment through much of the weekend," due to dialogue between university officials, VT police, and protest organizers.
Officials say the demonstrators on Sunday continued to not comply with policy and further occupied the Graduate Life Center and outdoor spaces next to Squires Student Centers.
At that point, the university decided that the situation was potentially unsafe and told protesters to remove their possessions and disperse. Those who did not disperse were approached by VT police and asked again to leave or be charged with trespassing.
At 10:15 p.m., police approached the demonstrators and asked them to disperse within five minutes. Those who didn't leave were arrested. The university did not say how many people were arrested.
The university issued an alert around 10:15 p.m. asking people to avoid the area.
Around 3:30 a.m. on Monday, the university updated that the incident had "stabilized," but that police were still present; people were still asked to avoid the area.