Pro-Palestinian protests sweep US campuses as House speaker heads to Columbia to voice ‘disgust’

Mike Johnson said he would call for Columbia’s president to resign, as thousands attend marches or set up encampments at schools

• Student Gaza protests – live updates

Tensions over pro-Palestinian protests at Columbia University, and campuses across the US, continued to rise on Wednesday as Mike Johnson, the Republican House speaker, prepared to visit the New York institution to address what he called “virulent antisemitism” at colleges nationwide.

The demonstrations, which began last week after students at Columbia set up encampments calling for the university to divest from weapons manufacturers with ties to Israel, have swept to campuses across the country, with mass suspensions and arrests of students.