NYPD says protesters had weapons, gas masks and 'Death to America!' pamphlets

A high-ranking official with the New York Police Department said protesters had weapons including knives and hammers as well as pamphlets with "Death to America!" written on them.

Michael Kemper, a NYPD's chief of transit, posted photos Friday of what police confiscated from the protesters.

“For those romanticizing the protests occurring on college campuses, ‘Death to America!’ is one sentiment that runs counter to what we believe in, what we stand for, and what many have fought for on behalf of this country,” Kemper stated on X. “And if you think the words written on this piece of paper are disturbing … you should hear the vile, disgusting, hateful, & threatening words coming out of the mouths of far too many of these so called ‘peaceful protestors.’”

Kemper posted a video of a pamphlet that stated, “Death to Israeli Real Estate” and “Death to America!” The pamphlet also stated, “DISRUPT/RECLAIM/DESTROY Zionist business interests everywhere!”

NYPD Deputy Commissioner Kaz Daughtry posted on X photos of items he said the police confiscated from protesters who took over Hamilton Hall at Columbia University. The photo showed gas masks, ear plugs, helmets, goggles, tape, hammers, knives, ropes, and a book on terrorism. The book is by Charles Townshend, Professor of International History at Keele University in England. It was published in 2011 and is 161 pages.

"These are not the tools of students protesting, these are the tools of agitators, of people who were working on something nefarious," Daughtry said on X. "Thankfully, your NYPD was able to prevent whatever they were planning and stop them before they could do it."

Kemper asked who was organizing the protests.

"However, as we have been stating for the past 2 weeks, there is an underlying radical indoctrination of some of these students. Vulnerable and young people being influenced by professional agitators. Who is funding and leading this movement?" Kemper asked on X.

Kemper also posted a letter from The New School requesting the NYPD's assistance in removing protesters from their campus on Friday.

"The actions and continuing escalation of these individuals are a substantial disruption of the educational environment and regular operations of the university," the letter stated.

The New School is a university in New York City. It closed all academic building on Friday and classes were moved to online. The college said classes on campus would resume Saturday.

Fox News reported that 56 protesters were arrested at The New School and New York University.