A trove of public documents revealed that the federal government has kept close tabs on pro- and anti-Israel protests across the country and cited concerns that Yale University was “pro-Hamas.”
The documents, obtained and reported on by Bloomberg, reveal that agents with the Federal Protective Service (FPS), a law enforcement agency under the purview of the Department of Homeland Security, closely surveilled the wave of protests that came in the wake of the war between Israel and Hamas, which began after the terrorist organization’s attack on October 7.
One October 13 email concerning a pro-Israel demonstration at Yale University cited concerns that the institution is “pro-Hamas.” The email from the FPS investigator explained that he had received a call from a United States Marshal informing him of a pro-Israel rally that was scheduled for the same day. “I checked in with New Haven PD and received the same information and will be on the scene,” his email reads.
“The concern is that Yale University is pro Hamas,” the inspector wrote before also adding “at this time there is no credible threat. As more information comes in I will advise.” It is not clear if the FPS inspector was citing his own concerns, those of local authorities, or those of the protesters.
The FPS monitored a number of different protests for and against Israel. A series of communications show that federal agents were worried that demonstrations could attract racially motivated violent extremists and become violent. On one occasion, agents warned a Biden administration official of demonstrations set to take place in October from “the same two groups that led to the ~50 arrests (and 500+ not arrested) at the WH yesterday and shutdown several entrances.”
“These organizers keep rotating between USG locations, and the missile incident at the Gaza hospital has started inflaming tensions obviously,” the email read.
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The communications came months before protests at universities across the country descended into violence. Students at Columbia University occupied a building on the campus and barricaded themselves inside and had to be removed from the premises by the New York Police Department.
Mass arrests at Columbia as the NYPD physically removes and flushes out protesters from Hamilton Hall. pic.twitter.com/sXsH32XCQ5
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) May 1, 2024
Protests also turned violent at the University of California Los Angeles (UCLA) as pro- and anti-Israel protesters clashed on campus before police arrived at the scene. Protesters also attempted to hold off police who attempted to enter and break up their encampment on the UCLA campus.