Following an occupation of part of Berlin's Humboldt University in protest over the threatened deportation of pro-Palestinian protesters, German police on Thursday said they had launched around 100 criminal investigations.

Some 89 protesters occupied a lecture hall at the university for several hours on Wednesday before police were able to get into the barricaded room. 

The police have begun probing a litany of suspected offenses, including aggravated trespassing, serious breach of the peace and the use of symbols linked to unconstitutional or terrorist organizations.

Police also said protesters threw an unknown liquid, which they suggested may have been urine, and fireworks at officers.

Why did pro-Palestinian protesters occupy a Berlin university?

The German capital has been a hotspot of protest against Israel's offensives in Gaza and students across the country have run protest camps on or near university campuses.

The protests have frequently faced heavy-handed responses from police, for which Germany has received international criticism.

Germany has also been criticized for its support of Israel. Wednesday's protesters cited the "relentless support for Israel's actions in Palestine that contravene international law."

But the occupation was also against attempts to deport four students over their participation in pro-Palestinian protests at Berlin's Free University. Police said that the two Irish, one Polish and one US citizen had been involved in "violent" protests on October 17, 2024.

They were accused of threatening university employees with axes and clubs during the protest, but they have not been convicted of any crimes.

The three EU citizens had their freedom of movement rights revoked. However, a court has since sided with an appeal by one of the Irish protesters, meaning that, for the time being, that individual cannot be deported. 

Why did Humboldt University call in police to remove protesters?

Wednesday's protest came to an end when Humboldt University leadership requested that police clear the occupation. Some 350 officers were deployed.

After several hours, they were able to enter the occupied hall and described scenes of vandalism. The police led 89 people out of the hall into a courtyard. Another 120 people reportedly joined the protest from the street.

The university said one of the reasons for its decision to bring in the police was the use of banners "on which the existence of the state of Israel was denied."

Since the Holocaust, Germany regards the protection of Jewish people and Israel's right to exist as a moral obligation it calls its Staatsräson, or reason of state. 

"Whoever attacks officers with pyrotechnics and urine is not only abandoning the area of legitimate protest, but also moving away from social acceptability," a police union said in response to Wednesday's operation.

Berlin police have been repeatedly criticized for their heavy-handed response to pro-Palestinian protesters.

Edited by: Wesley Rahn