Pro-Palestinian protesters arrested at Metropolitan State University of Denver

Auraria campus police arrested a small group of pro-Palestinian protesters at a Metropolitan State University building in Denver on Tuesday evening.

About 14 people sat in a circle inside the Advanced Manufacturing Sciences Institute and led chants in support of Palestine, while more protesters outside chanted and banged on the building. according to an Instagram livestream from the Colorado Palestine Coalition.

At least ten protesters, including two wheelchair users, were arrested at 6:30 p.m. Most seemed to be released after about an hour, leaving the building with yellow pieces of paper.

Protesters entered the Tivoli Student Union earlier in the day when Angie Paccione, executive director of the Colorado Department of Higher Education, met with a group of demonstrators just before noon. Auraria and MSU officials said in statements.

Protesters who met with Paccione threatened to “disrupt the commencement ceremonies if demands were not met,” campus officials said in a statement.

Another group “forcibly entered and occupied the fraternity’s administrative offices for about an hour before agreeing to meet with campus leaders at another time and leave, the statement said.

In a post titled ‘Protesters escalate tactics’ Metro State President Janine Davidson incorrectly stated that protesters used zip ties to lock the doors of the fraternity.

Davidson later said that police, not protesters, locked the doors with zip ties.