Palestinian protests in Calgary are being called a “brutal act.”

A group of concerned University of Calgary faculty, staff, students and alumni have written to the school's administration in response to a protest earlier this month.

The letter, sent to Calgary president Ed McCauley and school officials, said the group was “deeply disappointed and dismayed” by the decision to bring in Calgary police to clear the pro-Palestinian protest from campus.

“We, the undersigned faculty, staff and members of the Calgary community, view the protest as a “publicly-focused global education project'' and the actions of the university administration as a betrayal of the values ​​of higher education as a space for critical thinking and academic freedom. , and a commitment to equality, justice and social transformation,” reads the letter, signed by 623 members of the UCCalgary community.

On May 9, a protest gathered on campus and the school requested assistance from the Calgary Police Service in managing the peaceful march.

As time passed, police and administrators learned that the demonstrators did not want to leave university property.

At 11:15 p.m., after repeated police calls for protesters to leave campus, officers used a variety of non-lethal means, including rubber bullets, tear gas and flashbulbs, to clear the demonstration.

The letter, dated May 21, called the police's actions “brutal force against young students (who) were protesting peacefully.”

No protesters are reported to have been injured during the operation, and Calgary Police Chief Mark Neufeld told CTV News on May 14 that no official claims have been made.

Neufeld said the school's decision to seek help to end the protest was “very reasonable and sensible” and a response to what UCalgary has seen at other institutions around the world.

The Alberta government has since said the province's police watchdog will ask the Alberta Serious Incident Response Team to review police actions on May 9.

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The letter asks the school to conduct an independent investigation into its policies regarding the protest and campus safety.

It also asks the administration to meet with protesters to discuss their concerns and “follow a policy of non-violence and minimal police presence in peaceful demonstrations.”

In addition, he wants all charges against the protesters arrested at the event to be dropped.

At the time, Calgary police said charges were pending against several people arrested during the operation.

CTV News has reached out to CPS for details on the charges.