Vanderbilt University officials end anti-Israel rally in chancellor's office by locking students in building without access to water or bathrooms

Officials from Tennessee's Vanderbilt University ended an overnight sit-in protest against Israel at one of the prestigious institution's main buildings after locking students in without access to food, water or bathroom facilities. 

Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) protestors were seen charging past campus security and into the university's Kirkland Hall on March 26, beginning a major sit in that has so far resulted in several arrests, including of a local reporter who was later let go.  

Security footage released by the 151-year-old university shows a swarm of protestors pushing past a lone security guard at the front door of the building, where Vanderbilt Chancellor Daniel Diermeier's office is located. 

They took control of the building, but many allege that campus police locked them in as a pressure tactic.   

The sit-in began after the university's administration refused to allow students to vote on changing the student government's constitution to prevent funds from being spent on the protestors targets. 

Security footage released by the 151-year-old university shows a swarm of protestors pushing past a lone security guard at the front door of the building

They took control of the building, but many allege that campus police locked them in as a pressure tactic

Protestors said that once they were inside, they were forcibly prevented from leaving

Protestors said that once they were inside, they were forcibly prevented from leaving. Videos taken from inside the building, shared to social media, showed them sitting on the floor linking arms and taunting campus security. 

In one video, protestors were heard telling one police officer, who is black: 'You are black in America, and you're NOT standing with the marginalized people of the world. What does that make you?'

'32,000 dead and you don't care. You could stand with us and be on the right side of history, but you won't.'

The protestors then screamed 'shame' at him. 

But as the protest carried on into the night, many wanted to leave for medical reasons. 

One video shared to social media showed a protestor calling 911, claiming they were worried that if they went outside they'd be arrested, but that if they stayed inside they'd go into 'toxic shock.' 

Videos taken from inside the building, shared to social media, showed them sitting on the floor linking arms and taunting campus security

One video shared to social media showed a protestor calling 911, claiming they were worried that if they went outside they'd be arrested, but that if they stayed inside they'd go into 'toxic shock'

They said: 'There's currently a female student being denied the right to change her tampon that has been in for multiple hours, which leads to an increased risk of toxic shock syndrome.

'If she stands up to use the restroom to change her tampon, [campus police] are threatening arrest, so it's not an option for her.'

Other video shared to social media showed fellow protestors slamming on the windows of the building, chanting over and over again: 'Let them pee, let them eat.' 

Eventually, four students were arrested and suspended from the university, while a further 12 were only suspended, for their role in the protest, after everyone inside left voluntarily.  

'All of the protest participants who breached the building will be placed on interim suspension,' the university said. The suspension means they must leave campus and can't return pending a Student Affairs review process.

Three students were charged with misdemeanor assault because they pushed a community service officer and a staff member who offered to meet with them as they entered the building, the school said. 

A fourth student was charged with vandalism after breaking a window.

Nashville Scene reporter Eli Motycka tweeted that he was there to cover the protest when he was arrested and that the school's charge against him 'was immediately dismissed by the court magistrate for lacking probable cause.' 

Opponents of Israel's brutal war against Hamas, that has so far killed more than 31,000 people including women and children, have used the BDS movement as a non-violent way of protesting it. 

The movement seeks to target companies and organisations that it claims supports Israel's policies. 

Supporters say that boycotting these groups, and asking others to divest from them, puts pressure on them to stop working with Israel. 

Nashville Scene reporter Eli Motycka tweeted that he was there to cover the protest when he was arrested

Opponents of Israel's brutal war against Hamas, that has so far killed more than 31,000 people including women and children, have used the BDS movement as a non-violent way of protesting it

BDS supporters have gone after McDonald's and Starbucks. Earlier this month, Starbucks' Middle East operations announced it was cutting thousands of jobs in light of the BDS movement. 

Alshaya Group, which runs the Middle East arm of the coffee giant, said the layoffs were the 'result of the continually challenging trading conditions over the last six months'. 

McDonald's also said that it was facing a 'meaningful business impact' in the Middle East as a result of the war in Gaza, and Yum! Brands, which runs KFC and Pizza Hut, said 'sales were impacted by the conflict in the Middle East region with varying degrees of impact.'

Universities like Vanderbilt have become hotbeds for BDS protests organised by students. 

Earlier this month,  Columbia College Student Council endorsed a boycott equivalent to '$1 million in student fees' against companies that it sees as supporting Israel. 

In February UCLA's Undergraduate Students Association Council passed a BDS resolution that aimed to put pressure on Israel to stop its 'genocide.'

And in January, Harvard University saw scores of protestors gather in front of Chase Bank's Harvard Square site to protest the bank's investment in Elbit Systems, the primary weapons maker for the IDF. 

A Vanderbilt spokesperson told MailOnline: 'Free expression is a core value at Vanderbilt, as is civil discourse. 

'Our policies allow for members of the Vanderbilt community to protest and demonstrate regarding issues they care deeply about. Dozens of peaceful demonstrations have occurred over the past several months. 

'In consideration of safety and the university’s normal operations, we, as a matter of policy, define time, place and manner limitations. The safety and well-being of our community is a top priority. 

'The university will take action when our policies are violated, the safety of our campus is jeopardized and when people intimidate or injure members of our community.'