Climate activist Greta Thunberg was arrested Wednesday morning during a pro-Palestinian demonstration at the University of Copenhagen, where she and other activists tried to block an entrance to the university in protest of Israel's actions in Gaza.
In photos published in Danish media, police officers are seen leading Thunberg, who is wearing a keffiyeh around her neck, away in handcuffs.
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Greta Thunberg led away in handcuffs from anti-Israel demonstration at University of Copenhagen
The arrest of Thunberg and five other people came shortly after on her Instagram page she published a video of herself and other activists in front of a building at the university, in which she reported: "Members of the organization 'Students Against the Occupation' and I are in front of the University of Copenhagen administration building. We are here because dialog, encampment, demonstrations among other methods after a 3-year-long campaign did NOT lead the university to meet demands including an institutional academic boycott" against Israel.
She added that police officers began removing protesters from the scene. According to the reports, about 20 people in total participated in blocking the entrance to the university building, and three entered it.
A post, published by the Students Against the Occupation organization itself, implied that the members of the organization took over a museum building located within the university's boundaries, and it says that they are protesting the cooperation of the University of Copenhagen with Israeli universities. "We will not leave the place until the university stops cooperating with them," it posted.
Since the terrorist attack by Hamas on October 7 and the outbreak of the war in Gaza, Thunberg has used her large following on social media platforms to encourage protests against Israel, and in various cases she has been documented identifying with the Palestinians and calling to "crush Zionism." On October 20, 2023, less than two weeks after the murderous terrorist attack, she took a picture with some of her friends waving signs with Palestinian flags and herself holding a sign that read "Stand With Gaza." She has not spoke out about the over 1,200 murdered by Hamas in Israel on October 7.
In the following weeks, Thunberg said, among other things, that "there is no climate justice on occupied land" and called to "crush Zionism." In May, she participated in the pro-Palestinian demonstrations outside the Eurovision Hall in Malmö, demanding to stop Israel's actions in Gaza and to prevent the participation of the Israeli representative Eden Golan in the competition. The demonstration included incessant accusations of genocide in Gaza and violent chants, including "blood and fire have redeemed Palestine."