Protesters of the war in Gaza go into 5th day of encampments at George Washington University

WASHINGTON (DC News Now) — Students and other activists protesting the Israeli war in Gaza camped out for a fifth day at George Washington University with declarations that they will not stop until officials divest from all investments in Israel.

These GW students have said that the suspension of several of their peers by the university for protesting on campus will not deter them.

‘We’re doing this all for Gaza’: George Washington University demonstrations continue into day 4

“We have faith in our community that we will be able to stay here until we achieve our demands,” said Reem Lababdi, a sophomore at GW who is one of the leading organizers of the protest.

Student protesters defied the university by removing the metal barriers that were put up last week to limit the amount of students that could gather in the so-called U-yard. And those demonstrators have expanded their encampments that have shut down H street between 20th and 21st Streets Northwest.

“We took down the borders. We want to keep our students safe,” Lababdi said. “Inside the encampment, they were being denied adequate hygiene showers. People … didn’t have what they needed.”

Lababdi said that the student protesters are ready to talk to the GW brass about their demands but that they have not yet had one meeting going back months before the encampment began last week.

The suspended students, Lababdi said, are no longer on campus because there were ordered to leave last Saturday by 9 a.m.

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Corinne Hockman is not happy with the protests. She received an undergraduate and law degree from GW and said that the protests have made Jewish students feeling unsafe given the rhetoric used in speeches.

Hockman said she’s been lobbying the president’s office to limit the demonstrations that have brought concern to some Jewish students.

“There is a need to protect students,” Hockman said. “The heart of these protests are not necessarily about protecting or advocating for Palestinians as much as they are about denigrating Jewish students and Israeli.”

Hockman, who is Jewish, said that the protesters “neglect to mention” that Hamas members took hostages last fall and many are still being held several months later.

But Lababdi said that she and other protesters ignore critics who say their protests promote hate.

“I think slanders against our movement are a distraction from our righteous goal of ending the genocide in Gaza,” she said.

‘Never felt more proud to be Jewish and stand with my people’: Student protest at George Washington University enters second night

Supporters of the demonstrators have donated items such as food, sunscreen and water to help the encampment, which has been operating without water or electricity.

“There’s a blue tent where fresh food is brought from other restaurants and things like that, families who will buy or home make all the food,” said demonstrator Jason Nix. “So, there’s been this huge outpouring of support from the community. Despite any of the mild agitations we’ve gotten from other students or things like.”

University officials said last week that students who protested would be removed from the campus but after initially locking down the U-yard, no other action has been taken. And the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) has declined to remove the protesters at the best of GW officials.

The encampment on University Yard violates its clearly defined rules of conduct and behavior.

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