Pro-Palestinian Arab protesters who had been occupying King's College Circle on the University of Toronto (U of T) campus for more than 60 days moved out on Wednesday, ahead of a 6:00 p.m. deadline set by the court to vacate the encampment, CTV News reported.
On Tuesday, an Ontario judge ordered the pro-Palestinian Arab encampment to vacate the area. The decision also allows Toronto police or the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) to have authorization to arrest or remove any person who they believe to be contravening the order.
Speaking at a solidarity rally an hour before police were expected to move in, organizers of the encampment confirmed that they would abide by the court order and depart the site.
"We refuse to give the Toronto Police Service any opportunity to brutalize us as they have done repeatedly since October," Mohammad Yassin, a spokesperson for encampment organizers, said, according to CTV News.
"We are leaving on our terms to protect our community from the violence the University of Toronto is clearly eager to unleash upon us."
It marked the end of the encampment that began on May 2, when demonstrators set up tents on the downtown campus to demand that the university disclose and divest from investments in companies profiting from Israel's ongoing offensive in Gaza.
While the encampment was taken down, organizers said on Wednesday they remained steadfast in their demands from the university.
U of T turned to the courts in late May in an effort to clear the encampment. B'nai Brith Canada later announced it had filed to intervene in the legal efforts to disband the encampment that has been stationed at the campus since May 2.
The encampment at U of T is similar to anti-Israel encampments that have been set up at campuses across the US in recent weeks.