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University of Minnesota pro-Palestine encampment cleared, agreement reached

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University of Minnesota pro-Palestine encampment cleared, agreement reached


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MINNEAPOLIS — Thursday, pro-Palestine supporters agreed to remove their four-day long encampment at the University of Minnesota following an agreement made with school leadership.

Encampments on college campuses across the country have popped up in response to the civilian death toll in Gaza in response to the Israel-Hamas War and students calling for universities to divest from Israel. The university joins a growing list of schools that have made deals with protestors, including Northwestern University and Brown University.

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See our map: From Harvard to UT Austin to USC, college protests over Gaza are spreading.

One of the number of student groups involved in organizing the encampment posted on Instagram Thursday that Northrop Mall, where protestors occupied with dozens of tents, would be cleared by noon.

On Wednesday, organizers met with school officials to discuss their demands and interim University President Jeff Ettinger wrote in a letter to organizers they would agree to the following on the condition there are no more encampments.

  • Allow the organizing coalition to address the Board of Regents on May 10 concerning their demand for the university to divest from Israel

More: Pro-Palestinian protesters urge universities to divest from Israel. What does that mean?

  • Facilitate conversations with the career services department in response to the coalition’s demand to ban companies that do business with Israel from attending campus events and partaking in job fairs
  • Provide additional details on university disclosures during an upcoming meeting between leadership and the coalition
  • Recommend the University of Minnesota Police Department not arrest or press charges against anyone on a criminal offense as a result of the demonstrations of the last few days if the encampment is removed without issues

Ettinger said in a letter addressed to the university community that “while there is more work to do, and conversations are still planned with other student groups affected by the painful situation in Palestine, I am heartened by today’s progress.”

“It grew out of a desire among those involved to reach shared understanding. While we do not condone tactics that are outside of our policies, we appreciate student leaders’ willingness to engage in dialogue,” Ettinger said in the letter.

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Nine were arrested last week for trespassing after setting up tents on campus grounds without permission, but since have seen a minimal police presence despite several dispersal orders, according to protestors.

More: Police sweep onto UCLA campus, remove pro-Palestinian encampment: Live updates

What’s happening on other campuses?

Columbia University has been the heart of the protests as violence has erupted across the country. Since Tuesday, over 300 arrests have been made at the university and City College.

Encampments and protests at the University of Southern California and the University of California, Los Angeles have also turned violent and been met with police force, counter-protestors and dispersal orders. On Wednesday, over 132 arrests were made at UCLA.

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More: President Biden breaks silence on college protests: ‘Violence is not protected’

Demonstrators at the University of Wisconsin Madison were confronted by police and 34 people were arrested on Wednesday as well. The encampment remained Thursday.

All buildings previously closed due to the encampment will reopen on Thursday at noon, according to a statement from the university. The university had their last day of classes on Monday, with final exams to start Thursday.

Sam Woodward is the Minnesota elections reporting fellow for USA Today. You can reach her at swoodward@gannett.com.





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Utah Mammoth take down Minnesota 5-2 to end the Wild’s winning streak at 6

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Utah Mammoth take down Minnesota 5-2 to end the Wild’s winning streak at 6



The Wild were taken down by the Utah Mammoth 5-2 on Friday night to end Minnesota’s winning streak at six games. 

Lawson Crouse scored twice and U.S. Olympian Clayton Keller had a goal and two assists for Utah.

Logan Cooley and Barrett Hayton also scored and Karel Vejmelka made 21 saves to help the Mammoth rebound from a 4-2 home loss to NHL-leading Colorado on Wednesday night in their return from the Olympic break. Utah began the night in the first wild-card spot in the Western Conference.

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U.S. Olympian Matt Boldy scored and assisted on Kirill Kaprizov’s goal for Minnesota. Second behind Central Division-rival Colorado in the West, the Wild are 9-2-1 in their last 12. They beat the Avalanche 5-2 on Thursday night in Denver.

Cooley opened the scoring with a short-handed goal with 6:37 left in the first period. The former University of Minnesota star got the puck on the right side off a deflection and put a shot between Wallstedt’s legs for his 15th goal.

Keller scored his 18th at 4:26 of the second. Nick Schmaltz forced a turnover on a forecheck and fed Keller on the right side.

Crouse made it 3-0 at 7:49 of the second. He came down the middle, took a pass from Keller and beat Wallstedt with a backhander.

Kaprizov countered for Minnesota on a power play with 5:57 left in the second. He has 33 goals this season.

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Hayton made it 4-1 on a power play at 1:19 of the third, and Crouse added his 16th of the season on a tip with 7:12 to go.

Boldy got his 35th of the season with 5:57 remaining.

Up next

Wild: Host St. Louis on Sunday.

Mammoth: Host Chicago on Sunday.

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Shorthanded Clippers can’t keep pace with Anthony Edwards and Minnesota

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Shorthanded Clippers can’t keep pace with Anthony Edwards and Minnesota


Anthony Edwards scored 31 points, Donte DiVincenzo added 18 and the surging Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Clippers 94-88 on Thursday night.

Jaden McDaniels and Ayo Dosunmu each scored 12 points and Rudy Gobert had 13 rebounds to help the Timberwolves improve to 5-1 since Feb. 9 and 3-1 since the All-Star break.

Edwards, returning to the site of the All-Star Game, where he was the MVP, was 12 for 24 from the floor and sealed the victory with a step-back three-pointer over two defenders for a 92-88 lead with 42.9 seconds left.

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Minnesota improved to 2-0 on a three-game trip.

Derrick Jones Jr. scored 18 points and Bennedict Mathurin added 14 for the Clippers, who struggled from the outset with a season-low 38 points in the first half. Kris Dunn had 11 points for the Clippers (27-31), who have lost three consecutive games for the first time since December.

The Clippers struggled on offense without star Kawhi Leonard, out because of ankle soreness. The Clippers shot 40.5% from the floor, including 18.2% (four for 22) in the second quarter. Minnesota shot 43.4% in the game.

The Timberwolves (37-23) scored just 15 points in the second quarter and still topped the Clippers, who had 11. Minnesota led 44-38 at halftime behind 12 points from DiVincenzo and 11 from Edwards.

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The Clippers led by six in the third quarter and were up 68-63 heading into the fourth. Edwards’ drive and reverse layup put the Timberwolves up for good at 76-74 with 7:40 remaining.

The Clippers pulled within one three times in the last 2½ minutes, but Edwards answered each time. He scored the Timberwolves’ last nine points.

Up next for Clippers: vs. New Orleans on Sunday night.

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Church congregant filed lawsuit against alleged Minnesota church protesters

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Church congregant filed lawsuit against alleged Minnesota church protesters


A St. Paul church member has filed a federal lawsuit alleging that a group of individuals, including journalist Don Lemon and activist Nekima Levy Armstrong, unlawfully disrupted service last month as part of a coordinated political demonstration.

The complaint, filed by Ann Doucette in the U.S. District Court of Minnesota, alleges that a Jan. 18 demonstration at Cities Church interfered with her ability to worship and caused her to suffer damages, including emotional distress and trauma.

In addition to the former CNN anchor and Armstrong, the complaint names journalist Georgia Fort and activists Will Kelly, Jerome Richardson, Trahern Crews and Jamael Lundy. It also names St. Paul school board member Chauntyll Allen.

Doucette and seven of the defendants did not immediately respond to requests for comment. Doucette filed the complaint without the representation of an attorney. In an emailed statement to NBC News, Crews denied the lawsuit’s allegations “with empathy and compassion.”

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The lawsuit accuses the group of civil conspiracy, aiding and abetting, intentional infliction of emotional distress, interference with religious exercise and trespassing.

“As a result of Defendants’ actions, the worship service was disrupted, congregants experienced fear and distress, and Plaintiff’s ability to freely exercise her religion in a private place of worship was unlawfully interfered with,” the lawsuit states.

All eight defendants are also facing federal charges for conspiracy against the rights of religious freedom at a place of worship and for interfering with the exercise of the right of religious freedom. Lemon has pleaded not guilty to all charges, saying outside the court, “I wanted to say this isn’t just about me, this is about all journalists, especially in the United States.”

Fort, Crews and Lundy were released on bond and entered not guilty pleas, according to The Associated Press.

Don Lemon reporting from an anti-ICE demonstration at Cities Church in St. Paul, Minn.@TheDonLemonShow via YouTube

This is the latest legal action tied to protests in the Twin Cities, where tensions remain over the Trump administration’s immigration crackdown and the fatal shootings of Renee Good and Alex Pretti.

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According to the lawsuit, the demonstrators engaged in “coordinated conduct” by organizing meetings ahead of the “Operation Pullup” protest and promoting it on social media.

The lawsuit alleges that on the morning of Jan. 18, a coordinated group of individuals entered Cities Church, halting the worship service, and chanting “‘ICE Out!’ and ‘Hands Up, Don’t Shoot!’” while obstructing aisles. Protesters could allegedly be seen “confronting the pastor and congregants in a menacing manner,” the lawsuit says, noting that their chanting and “aggressive gestures” caused “severe emotional distress, fear, anxiety, and trauma” and caused children “terror.”

Demonstrators gathered at the church because they said its pastor, David Easterwood, was the acting director of an ICE field office in the city, the lawsuit says.

Lemon was arrested in January in California and accused of violating federal civil rights law after covering the protest on Jan. 18. He was released on a personal recognizance bond before a federal grand jury in Minnesota returned the indictment against Lemon and eight co-defendants, all of whom are also named in Doucette’s lawsuit.

Nekima Levy Armstrong, Cities Church protest arraignment, St. Paul, Minn., February 2026
Nekima Levy Armstrong in St. Paul, Minn., on Feb. 13.Carlos Gonzalez / Star Tribune via Getty Images

In the lawsuit, Doucette alleges that Lemon specifically livestreamed the protest, “noting congregants’ fear and distress, and appeared to take satisfaction in the disruption.”

Levy Armstrong, a Minneapolis-based civil rights attorney and activist, was also arrested for her participation in the St. Paul protest. Her arrest drew national attention after the White House shared on social media doctored photos where she appeared to be crying.

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