Independent journalist Anthony Cabassa, a veteran who served the country for more than ten years in the United States Coast Guard, was attacked and robbed at the University of California in Los Angeles (UCLA) by antisemitic protesters, according to Cabassa who decried the attack on X (Twitter).
“Just had my phone charger stolen from me from a protestor because we refused to stop filming in a public area. I asked security to help retrieve my property and they said they don’t have authorization, talk to admin,’” Cabassa denounced in a publication on X before publishing two videos of the moment of the attack.
“I talked to the admin, and they said to tell the school police. The school police said, ‘We have been ordered not to engage by the school admin. ‘By that time, the thief was long gone,” the journalist added.
In the videos that Cabassa uploaded, you can see how the journalist of Hispanic origin was cornered by several antisemitic protesters who are protesting against Israel and its military operations in Gaza on the UCLA campus, following the process of pro-Hamas protests throughout the country.
In one of the videos, one of the protesters told Cabassa that he was not going to be allowed into the public university because “we don’t allow aggressive media” on campus.
🚨 #VIDEO | El periodista Anthony Cabassa fue robado y atacado mientras cubría las protestas pro Palestina en la UCLA. La seguridad del campus y la policía, que se encontraban a escasos metros cuando ocurrió, se negaron a intervenir. pic.twitter.com/KjuxFpCj1g
— VOZ (@VozMediaUSA) April 30, 2024
“Stop pushing me! Stop pushing me! You’re restricting my movement,” Cabassa said to the protesters who surrounded him. “This is false incarceration. This is false incarceration. I’m allowed to be in here. I’m a journalist, credentialed.”
“Okay, this is public property. Oh, here we go. Well, this is what they do to media. You guys saw that earlier, they let media in there. That’s one of the guys. And they allowed them because they said they’re part of it. Apparently, no free press here exists,” continued Cabassa, who later received the response that the protesters do not allow the press critical of the protests to enter.
In subsequent tweets, Cabassa claimed that the protesters stole his belongings, pinned him against the wall and restricted his movements “while campus security and police stood just feet away.”
“UCPD say they have been given orders to ‘stand down.’ This is a public campus space,” denounced Cabassa.
The journalist later said that campus security explained to him that he had a right to be at the university, but that the administration still ordered him to leave.
He then made another complaint against UCLA authorities: “Multiple students have reported harassment, local media to include KTLA journalists were told they’re not allowed in, and UCPD and Campus Security have repeatedly told me there’s nothing they can do as they’ve been ordered to stand down. Despite this,UCLA’ss chancellor continues to allow this behavior””
This is Part 2. When I asked why some media was allowed inside, they said it was because it was media that was FOR their cause. They proceeded to surround me and restricted my movement for about a minute and kept me pinned to the wall. Again, even security told me I was legally… https://t.co/EgRVEBfWM1 pic.twitter.com/yJBHiPoAaP
— Anthony Cabassa (@AnthonyCabassa_) April 30, 2024
The attack against Cabassa occurs in a delicate context in universities across the country, with antisemitic protesters taking over university campuses in protest of Israeli military operations in Gaza following the Hamas terrorist attacks on October 7.
Demonstrators learn hand-to-hand combat
Despite not being allowed access to the university campus, Cabassa reported on X that he was able to capture with a drone the moment when antisemitic protesters were practicing hand-to-hand combat, presumably as part of their training to confront law enforcement.
“Using a drone I was able to get EXCLUSIVE UCLA Pro Palestine encampment footage. They are TRAINING protestors in hand to hand combat as LAPD expected to tear down the encampment as soon as tonight, and potential fights with police expected,” Cabassa wrote.
“The school has deemed the encampment 'unlawful' and have threatened students with suspension or even expulsion if they refuse to leave, per school staff source,” he added.
BREAKING🚨: Using a drone I was able to get EXCLUSIVE UCLA Pro Palestine encampment footage. They are TRAINING protestors in hand to hand combat as LAPD expected to tear down the encampment as soon as tonight, and potential fights with police expected.
The school has deemed the… pic.twitter.com/SmLSX6cPjG
— Anthony Cabassa (@AnthonyCabassa_) May 1, 2024
